Desiccant based humidification/dehumidification system

ABSTRACT

An apparatus and method for automatically regulating the environmental system of a motorized vehicle and other articles having storage compartments. As impinging air flow is directed through the cabin or compartment subject to environmental control it comes in contact with a desiccant filler contained within a desiccant wheel or canister. The desiccant material absorbs moisture out of the air stream. The resultant air stream, or the extracted moisture released into another air stream, may then be directed to the interior of the motorized vehicle or used in other parts of the system. The net effect is a decrease or increase in the relative humidity level of the air mass contained in the cabin or compartment of a motorized vehicle or refrigeration unit. 
     As one portion or element of the desiccant filler becomes saturated, the other portion or element of the desiccant filler completes it&#39;s regeneration cycle. The air streams are altered so that the designated air stream remains in either the hydrous or anhydrous desiccant, thus producing a constant air flow containing either an increased relative humidity or an air stream with a reduced relative humidity to achieve the desired result. 
     The apparatus includes, at least one moisture collection device having an inlet and an outlet, and a system of flow conduits or paths into and out of the compartment or cabin. The air streams may be directed to at least one heat exchanger, a pre-cooler, a compressor, or an evaporator.

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.08/976,275 filed Nov. 21, 1997, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,092,375, which was adivisional of U.S. application Ser. No. 08/771,892, filed Dec. 23, 1996,now U.S. Pat. No. 5,873,256, which was a continuation of applicationSer. No. 08/388,140, filed Feb. 13, 1995, now abandoned, which was acontinuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 08/271,517, filed Jul. 7,1994, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,514,035.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates generally to a method and apparatus forboth humidification and dehumidification through the use of desiccantmaterials, as well as the automatic regulation of the relative humidityof the air contained in motor powered vehicles (hereinafter “motorizedvehicles”), and the efficient automatic elimination and prevention offrost, fog, or condensation on the inside of the window glass ofvehicles, and the elimination and prevention of frost in refrigerationunits.

2. Description of the Related Art

The invention provides features and benefits by controlling relativehumidity in a way not previously available. Automobiles, trucks, vans,trains, boats, ships, military vehicles, aircraft, tractors, motorizedrecreation vehicles, and various other types of motorized vehicles havepreviously lacked a successful and economical method or apparatus toautomatically monitor and control the relative humidity within the cabinof the vehicle.

Previously produced motorized vehicle environmental systems have beendeveloped to increase or decrease the cabin air temperature, regulatethe rate of air flow, filter dust or pollen particles out of the air,defrost/defog the windshield, or reduce cabin noise, but none of theenvironmental systems have attempted to economically and effectivelyregulate the relative humidity level of the cabin air. Although theenvironmental systems in some over the road trucks have utilized waterhumidification and various dehumidification methods in the past, thesystems were either inefficient, unhealthy, or expensive due to theirinitial installation cost, maintenance requirements, or their high levelof energy consumption. There are currently desiccant baseddehumidification systems for commercial buildings, however, they do notuse the same processes or methods to provide a heat source forregeneration or the same configuration of desiccant wheel that is usedas an element of this inventive method and apparatus, and none employ acanister like that shown and claimed.

Traditional refrigeration and freezer units produce frost orcondensation within the box or on the evaporator coils when the humidityof the air reaches the saturation point as the air is cooled in theunit. The inherent frost problem restricts the air flow over the coils,creates a frost buildup on the inside of the box, and limits theefficiency of the coils. The current methods of defrosting these typesof units use additional energy and utilize expensive apparatus to removethe frost.

In previously manufactured motorized vehicles the relative humidity ofthe cabin has essentially been unmonitored, unregulated and uncontrolledexcept through the use of traditional air-conditioner evaporator units.The lack of humidity control of the cabin air in motorized vehicle canhave a negative effect on safety, comfort, health, and operatingefficiency.

In motorized vehicles the need for an efficient and effective way toincrease the relative humidity in the cabin to improve the comfort forthe occupants has existed for many years. If the motorized vehicle isoperating in cold weather without the addition of humidity into thecabin air, the continued use of the heater in combination with theintroduction of cool dry fresh air from outside will cause the relativehumidity in the cabin to decrease to a point where the occupants maybecome uncomfortable. Traditional humidification units have experiencedmany problems due to the need to haul water and health hazards arepresent from the growth of bacteria, mold and mildew in the system.

In aircraft the problem is compounded because of the long duration ofthe flight and the extremely low levels of humidity that occurs inaircraft. In most long range commercial aircraft the cabin environmentalsystem is heated by compressed air taken from the compressor section ofthe turbine engine. Outside air enters the engine air intake, iscompressed and thus heated by the compressor section of the engine. Someof the hot compressed air going through the engine is vented off fromthe engine prior to the air entering the burner section of the engine.The hot air is then forced into the cabin environmental system.

During most flights, the outside air has a low relative humidity beforeit is heated, and the result of heating the air produces an extremelylow relative humidity when the air enters the cabin. Even the moisturegiven off by evaporation from the occupant's perspiration and fromevaporation of moisture out of the occupants lungs is not sufficient tokeep the cabin at a high enough relative humidity for it to becomfortable to the occupants. The moisture given off by the occupantsand generated from other sources escapes out of the cabin as the stalecabin air is expelled from the cabin. Although the cabin of a commercialaircraft may have the temperature regulated very close to 70° F., therelative humidity can drop to well below 20%.

The CO₂ in the cabin can cause discomfort for the occupants when the CO₂reaches levels greater than 1000 ppm (parts per million). This highlevel of CO₂ exist because of the low percentage of new fresh airbrought into the cabin as compared to the ratio of old stale airrecirculated. The ratio of the fresh air is inadequate to replace enoughof the unwanted CO₂. If the environmental system circulates in morefresh air from outside to reduce the ratio of CO₂ and increase the ratioof Oxygen, the resultant air mass would have an even lower relativehumidity. This would produce a relative humidity level even lower thanthe current uncomfortable levels of less than 20%.

These extreme conditions cause the passengers to experience substantialdiscomfort caused by two factors: 1.) stuffy feeling from poorventilation of fresh air; and 2.) dryness from extremely low relativehumidity. The effects of these two factors manifest in the physiologicalconditions for the occupants as respiratory irritation, headaches, andfatigue. These same factors also effect the flight crew and impact thesafe operation of the aircraft due to the crew member's distraction fromthe effects of high CO₂ and low relative humidity.

In aircraft design, there has always been strong economic pressure toreduce the operational cost by reducing the cost of fuel. The weight ofthe aircraft has a direct relationship to the consumption of fuel. Foreach pound of cargo which must be reduced to off set an additional poundof aircraft weight there is a penalty due to the loss of revenue for thepound of cargo and the additional cost of fuel to transport the extraweight added to the aircraft. If an inventive apparatus is installed inthe aircraft, the weight of the apparatus is added to the total airframe weight. Of course, the additional weight of the apparatus willhave a long term operational cost disadvantage simply due to the weightof the apparatus installed in the aircraft. The benefits of passengercomfort must off set the cost penalty of initial unit cost and long termoperational fuel cost. The cost benefit of lower aircraft weight due tothe conditioning of the air in the cabin is a respectable trade-off.

It is commonly understood that water is heavier than air. What is notcommonly understood is that water vapor is lighter than air. Since theinventive apparatus adds water vapor to the air contained in the cabinthe apparatus is actually reducing the weight of the aircraft byreducing the weight of the cabin air. Air is made up of: NITROGEN 78%(NI) with 14.0067 AMU (Atomic Mass Units); OXYGEN 21% (0) with 15.9994AMU and OTHER GASES 1% which consist of: ARGON 0.9%, CARBON DIOXIDE0.03% and varying amounts of WATER VAPOR Since CARBON has an AMU of12.011 the combined molecule of CARBON DIOXIDE with CARBON: 12.011 andOXYGEN: 15.9994 is actually lighter than OXYGEN alone with 15.9994. Thiswould provide the designer with a marginal incentive to increase theCARBON DIOXIDE content in the air mass of the cabin to reduce theaircraft weight. When OXYGEN 15.9994 is combined with two (2) HYDROGEN1.00794 AMU atoms the result is a molecule with a much lower weight.Much lighter than NITROGEN, OXYGEN, or CARBON DIOXIDE.

When water vapor is added to the cabin air mass unlike CARBON DIOXIDEthe passengers experience more healthful and comfortable breathing and asignificantly greater reduction in air mass weight. The evaluation ofthe apparatus must consider not only to the comfort and safety of theoccupants, but also the offset in weight reduction from the water vapordisplacement of the heavier cabin air gasses. Many people working withdesiccants will refer to removing a given amount of water from an airmass, and the values given may be pounds of water or gallons of water,what they fail to mention is the water vapor removed is replaced by aheavier air mass.

It is not practical for the aircraft designers to simply modify theaircraft environmental systems by adding a conventional liquidhumidification apparatus which would increase relative humidity in thecabin air with an atomized spray of water into the vent system toperform the needed humidification. The addition of a water basedhumidification system would only create a new set of problems. Theseproblems include the added cost of transporting the liquid water, theadditional maintenance expense to keep the system clean and operatingproperly, and health concerns related to bacteria growing in the wetarea of the system.

The cabin environmental systems for today's commercial aircraft weredesigned to use a minimum amount of energy from the engines by simplyrecirculating more old stale cabin air and adding less fresh air fromoutside the aircraft. The fresh air from outside is brought into theaircraft by bleeding off heated compressed air from the compressorsection of the engine (bleed air). In today's large long haul aircraftcabins, the manufactures have traded off passenger comfort and healthfor fuel efficiency which has created unhappy passenger with a strongdesire for better comfort and a more healthful environmental system.

There is a significant need to develop a method to economically andsafely humidify the fresh outside air which is forced into the cabin. Ifaircraft cabin environmental systems had the capability to increase thehumidity in the cabin, this would not only solve the current problemwith the existing low level of relative humidity, this would also enablethe system designers to increase the ratio of fresh air introduced intothe cabin without causing a severely negative impact on the relativehumidity level of the cabin air.

For the environmental system to bring more fresh air into the cabin, thedesigners must consider the following factors, including, but notlimited to:

1.) the need to compensate for additional heat from the added fresh airto maintain the cabin temperature of 70°.

2.) the effects from a larger volume of fresh air on maintaining thecorrect level of cabin pressure.

3.) the requirement for additional humidification of the additionalfresh air to correct for the lower relative humidity.

Since the aircraft engine compressor system has the capability toprovide larger volumes of fresh air that is both heated and compressedthe modification to these elements of the existing environmental systemswould be minimal. The remaining system deficiency, which is the lack ofrelative humidity control, would require the incorporation of a newhumidification system.

Although aircraft experience the most severe cabin environmentalproblems related to low relative humidity, all other closed cabinmotorized vehicles including but not limited to cars, trucks, busses,boats, military vehicles, trains, etc. experience similar low humidityproblems of varying degrees. Many occupants of land motorized vehiclesexperience discomfort from low relative humidity in the cabin. Theoperators of overland trucks, individuals spending long duration's oftime in automobiles, busses or other motorized vehicles experiencediscomfort from extremely low relative humidity due to the effect ofoperating the cabin heater for extended periods.

Just as most motorized vehicles have the need to regulate thetemperature for passenger comfort by either increasing or decreasing theenvironmental air temperature and rate of air flow in the cabin, thereis also a need to control the percent of relative humidity of the cabinair to provide an acceptable level of comfort.

Existing motorized vehicles lack an effective dehumidification system,they have three significant reasons why this improvement is needed: 1.)Safety could be enhanced by eliminating windshield fog/frost; 2.)Comfort for the occupants could be improved by controlling the maximumlevel of relative humidity; and 3.) Efficiency in the operation of themotorized vehicle from a reduction of fuel consumption could be attaineddue to the reduction of energy consumption of the existingair-conditioning system since the current method of dehumidificationexpends additional compressor energy on the condensation of moisture onthe evaporator coils of the traditional air-conditioner.

Motorized vehicle operation safety is believed to be significantlyenhanced by this invention due to the automatic prevention or rapidelimination of visual impairment or obstruction from condensation, fog,or frost on the inside of cabin windows of motorized vehicles (e.g.cars, trucks, boats, helicopters, tractors, trains, military equipment,airplanes, etc.)

Motorized vehicles have for years experienced window/windshieldcondensation under certain environmental conditions. The closed area ofthe cabin, along with the occupants breathing out moist air, and in somecases rain soaked clothing tends to rapidly produce condensation on theinside of the glass of the windows. Condensation has been known toaccumulate during the operation of a motorized vehicle when the insidecabin air temperature and high relative humidity of the cabin combineswith the cold window glass to produce windshield fog/frost.

Traditional cabin defrost/defog systems provide the operator with theoption to switch to outside air and/or increase the inside cabintemperature to remove the condensation. This method of defrost/defogattempts to eliminate the condensation by introducing outside air with alower level of humidity and/or change the inside air temperature, or thetemperature of the window glass, to avoid having the inside air reachthe due point. Another traditional approach, that consumes additionalfuel, is using the air-conditioner evaporator to defrost the windshieldwhile the heater is operating to warm the cabin.

The net result of these systems is the occupants must take the necessaryactions to attempt to eliminate the condensation, and the comfort of theoccupants may also be sacrificed so as to eliminate the condensation. Inthese situations, safe operation of the motorized vehicle could bejeopardized because the corrective action to eliminate the condensationdoes not usually begin until the occupant can see the condensation,which is often after the operator's vision is already impaired. Theoperator must then adjust the environmental controls by attempting toset the climate controls to a setting which will eliminate thecondensation. If the operator makes the adjustment incorrectly thewindow may actually accumulate more condensation and create a moreserious unsafe condition, such as when the operators vision through thewindshield or other windows is completely blocked by condensation.

There are times when the introduction of outside air is undesirable tothe occupants of the cabin, such as when the motorized vehicle ispassing through smog, exhaust filled environments, or in the presents ofother anxious gases or fumes. Most of the current methods attempting toeliminate condensation are only adaptations to the conventional heatingand cooling units and neither of these systems have the distinctcapability to effectively control both the cabin relative humidity andtemperature. For example, on high humidity days with rain soakedoccupants entering the motorized vehicle the systems must rapidlyeliminate the condensation from the windshield. As the cabin air masswarms up the moisture from the clothing begins to evaporate into the airas the warmer air mass increases it's capability to hold moisture. Thewarm moisture saturated air is cooled when it comes in contact with theinside surface of the windshield glass which causes the moisture to formcondensation on the surface of the glass. Many environmental controlsystems of motorized vehicles do not have the capability to immediatelyeliminate or prevent the formation of condensation on the windshieldunder these conditions.

Since the definition of environmental air-conditioning is not limited tojust cooling when considering occupant comfort, the definition alsoencompass temperature, air motion, moisture levels, radiant heat levels,dust, various pollutants, sound, and microorganisms when considering thetotal cabin environment air conditioning. Relative humidity controlshould be a major element of the overall system design. Although many ofthe cabin environmental systems in today's motorized vehicles have beenimproved to include automatic temperature and air volume movement (CFM)control settings, manufactures have not incorporated into climaticcontrol systems the capability to automatically and efficiently increaseor decrease the relative humidity level in the cabin.

The human body regulates it's temperature of 98.6° F. during differentlevels of physical activity. The metabolic rate of an individual isbased on the activity level of the individual. The human body tends tobe comfortable in a temperature range of 67° F. to −72° F. in Winter and73° F. to −79° F. Summer. With the body continuously giving off heat @98.6° F. to the surrounding air mass with 70° F., the body regulates therate of heat emission to maintain a constant 98.6° F. The body metabolicrate while sleeping is 0.7, while driving a car 1.5, while walking 2.6,and during competitive sports 8.7. The higher the metabolic rate, themore heat the body needs to give off to maintain 98.6° F. The bodycontrols it's temperature by controlling the emission of energy from thebody by radiation, by convection to air currents that impinging on theskin or clothing, by conduction of clothing and objects that arecontacted, and by evaporation of moisture in the lungs and of sweat fromthe skin.

Evaporation and convection heat loss are functions of air temperatureand velocity. Evaporation is a function, in addition, of relativehumidity. Air-conditioning (A/C) cooling units for traditional motorizedvehicles primarily use convection heat loss to maintain the comfort forthe occupants of the cabin. These A/C cooling units do not have thecapability to lower the relative humidity much below the saturationlevel to enhance the human body's natural cooling effect fromevaporation. In the existing motorized vehicles equipped withenvironmental cooling units, when the occupants wants faster cooling,they must lower the unit's temperature setting, increase the air flowvolume to maximum, and set the unit's air flow to recirculate. Thesesettings may increase the body's cooling rate, but they also create anuncomfortable cold clammy feeling for the occupants if the cabin has ahigh relative humidity. If the relative humidity exceeds 60% theoccupants feel wet.

For example, when the temperature is below 70° F. and the relativehumidity is in excess of 60% the occupant feels clammy-cold, and with ahigh relative humidity and the temperature above 77° F. they feelsticky-hot. There are many times when the occupants may be operating theA/C cooling unit because they feel uncomfortable even when the cabintemperature is below 70° F. due to a relative humidity above 60%.

If the environmental control unit had the capability to independentlycontrol the relative humidity the occupant would feel comfortable usinga smaller volume of cool air and would actually operate the compressorcooling unit less often.

The air-conditioning cooling units in today's motorized vehicles areboth mechanical (belt) driven and electrical powered from the engine.The air-conditioner system places an additional load on the engine thatdecreases the motorized vehicle's acceleration performance and increasesthe engine's fuel consumption. The lack of efficiency in theair-conditioner equates into higher fuel cost of operating the motorizedvehicle and lower performance.

Since today's motorized vehicle's environmental systems lack thecapability to lower the relative humidity before the air passes over thecooling coils, the air-conditioner must use additional energy tocondense out the moisture when the air has a high relative humidity. Thecondensing out of the moisture on a high temperature, high humidity daycauses the unit to expends approximately 20% to 30% of it energyperforming this conversion of water vapor to a liquid. As the airtemperature is lowered with a high relative humidity it passes over thecooling coils and the moisture will condense out as the air approachesthe dew point. The condensation produced from this cooling can createwet areas within the air-conditioner unit where dangerous bacteria cangrow and then spread into other areas of the system or cause the insideof the motorized vehicle to smell like mildew. If the cooling coils arebelow 32° F. the condensation will form frost on the coils.

Most available units are designed to maintain the cooling coiltemperature at about 35° F. to eliminate the build up of ice on thecoils. The air-conditioning unit's air cooling output is limited by it'sability to lower the air's temperature because of this minimumtemperature limit on the coils of 35° F. If the relative humidity in theair passing over the coils could be lowered, the dew point of themoisture in the air would be lower and the condensation would not formuntil the air reached a much lower temperature, or if the relativehumidity is low enough it may never form frost when the air passes overthese cold coils.

Since the units are limited by the 35° F. coil temperature the cold airoutput of the unit cannot be lower than the temperature of the coilswithout a frost build up, therefore, the systems are designed to put outlarger volumes of air (Cubic Feet/Minute) to accomplish the necessarycabin air cooling. Moving larger volumes (CFM) of air requires greaterenergy consumption.

The currents systems are noisy and the blast of cold air on theoccupants produce an unpleasant cabin environment. Since these systemsproduce cold moist air the occupants will set the temperature lowerbecause the occupant's own body is not benefiting by the potentialcooling effect from the body's natural evaporation that could be gainedwith a lower relative humidity of the air stream entering the cabin.Since the air-conditioners lack the capability to lower the relativehumidity without operating the compressor the occupants will turn on theair-conditioner more often because they feel uncomfortable. Theoccupants could be perfectly comfortable with a higher cabin temperatureif the relative humidity were lower.

In summary, high fuel consumption in the current environmental systemsis believed to be largely the result of: 1.) having to move more CFM ofair to accomplish the necessary cooling; 2.) minimum cooling coiltemperature of 35° F.; 3.) the occupants will set the desiredtemperature lower than necessary for comfort due to high relativehumidity; 4.)the occupants will use the unit more often for comfort;and, 5.) cooling moist air requires more energy than cooling dry air;.

Substantial savings in fuel consumption of motorized vehicles could beobtained if cabin environmental units could efficiently lower therelative humidity to a comfortable level in the cabin air.

Conventional systems do not have the capability to perform both thehumidification and dehumidification function utilizing the same elementsof their apparatus. Many times the environmental system is operating theheater while the air-conditioning cooling is operating to eliminatewindshield condensation; and few if any, vehicles have the capability toeffectively dehumidify the cabin air.

Many motorized vehicles and trailers pulled by motorized vehicles haverefrigeration or freezer units to keep the contents of the trailer ortruck cold or below freezing. Most freezer equipment has been designedto go through a defrost cycle to eliminate the frost. The defrost cyclesconsist of a heating cycle in most cases to melt the frost that hasformed on the coils. These defrost cycles are inefficient due to theheating and re-cooling required to perform the defrosting. Some unitshave duel coils to allow one to defrost while the other coil is cooling.None of these units has the capability to regulate the relative humidityother than through the current methods of using the cold evaporatorcoils to condense out moisture, or allow the build up of frost and thenmelt the frost thereby allowing the water to drained to the outside ofthe unit. A large amount of energy is expended by these units to removefrost and moisture.

SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

The invention automatically regulates the environmental system'simpinging air flow through a desiccant coated materials and in this waythe moisture is adsorbed out of the air stream into the desiccant ormoisture is released out of the desiccant material into another airstream to produce either a decrease or increase in the relative humiditylevel of the air mass contained in a motorized vehicle or refrigerationunit. The designated air stream passing through the desiccant materialis periodically altered by the process to continually direct the airstream into either a hydrous or anhydrous desiccant material.

The process and apparatus preferably achieve a system balanced so as oneelement of desiccant becomes saturated, the other element of desiccantcompletes it's regeneration cycle, the air stream is altered so that thedesignated air stream remains in either the hydrous or anhydrousdesiccant, thus producing a constant air flow containing either anincreased relative humidity or an air stream with a reduced relativehumidity to achieve the desired result. The cycling of the air flow overthe desiccant is automatically controlled to alternate between differentsections of a desiccant wheel or between different desiccant canistersto achieve a continuous adsorption and regeneration process.

An important element of the desiccant wheel or desiccant canister filleris the desiccant coated on a honeycomb or similar structured materialcreating the air flow passages providing the even distribution of theair stream over the surface of the desiccant. The surface of the airflow passages are coated with a desiccant material so as to expose theair stream to the maximum available surface as it passes through thestructure with a coating of hygroscopic material such as lithiumchloride, titanium silicate, or other desiccant material capable ofadsorbing moisture out of a cool air stream and which is also capable ofreleasing the moisture through evaporation when a hot air stream passesthrough the passages.

The titanium silicate desiccant which is produced by EngelhardCorporation has the capability to effectively adsorb moisture at roomtemperature and release moisture to regenerate the desiccant throughevaporation at 140° F. The process of alternating cycles of air sourcesover the desiccant material enables the system to reuse the desiccantand continuously function over an indefinite period of time. One of theunique features of this process is that it utilizes as a source ofregeneration energy (in most embodiments of the apparatus and under mostenvironmental conditions) the available heat energy from the heatingsystem, and/or excess heat energy from the engine, and/or excess heatfrom the air-conditioner compressor and coils to perform the desiccantregeneration.

The inventive process efficiently utilizes desiccants to counteract theinherent environmental conditions of low relative humidity when an airmass is heated and a high relative humidity when the environmentalair-conditioning cooling unit is operating. The invention alsoautomatically removes/prevents fog, frost, or condensation from thewindshield of a motorized vehicle, and prevents the build up of frost inrefrigeration unit through desiccant dehumidification. In addition theapparatus automatically regulates the desired relative humidity of theair mass to a level set either automatically or manually on the digitalautomatic control unit of the apparatus while the environmentalair-conditioning cooling, heating, or refrigeration unit is on or offand with the airflow selector set to recirculate or fresh air.

The intended functions are performed automatically through variations inair flow over desiccant materials and/or the mechanical relocation ofdesiccant materials as various air streams flows through the apparatus.The inventive method and apparatus removes or adds humidity to an airstream. When cool air passes over the desiccant surface, moisture fromthe cool air is adsorbed into a desiccant material. After the air streamis altered and/or the desiccant is repositioned automatically by thesystem, a hot air stream is employed to release the moisture from thedesiccant into the hot air stream by evaporation as the hot air streampasses over or through the desiccant material.

The desiccant regeneration occurs when a hot air stream changes thedesiccant from hydrous to anhydrous by evaporation as a hot air streampasses through a desiccant material that is either adhered to thesurface of a honeycomb structure of NOMEX; or the desiccant is adheredto a material similar in shape to the honeycomb, such as rolledcorrugated card board; or a combination of desiccant and structuralmaterials making up the structure of a canister filler or desiccantwheel; all of which are here after referred to as honeycomb.

The air streams is alternately passed through either a desiccant coatedhoneycomb canister filler or a portion of a desiccant coated honeycombwheel. After the moisture is adsorbed into the desiccant during the coolair cycle, the desiccant on the honeycomb structure is repositioned orthe air stream is altered to cause a hot air stream to pass through thestructure resulting in the evaporation of the moisture into the hot airstream thus causing the desiccant to release the moisture into the hotair stream which increases the relative humidity. Through this methodthe moisture can be removed from one air mass and then transferred intoanother air mass by a process of adsorption of moisture into thedesiccant material and then followed by the evaporation of the moistureout of the desiccant material into another air stream.

The inventive method and apparatus has the ability to automaticallyregulate the environmental conditions including the level of relativehumidity of the cabin air of a motorized vehicle, or the air containedin a refrigeration unit. The automatic control unit, which is anessential component, monitors internal and external environmentalfactors and when necessary activates the appropriate process where theair is conditions by controlling the apparatus and process to providecomfort for the occupants, automatic defrosting/defogging, andoperational efficiency. The sequence of process steps, mechanicalactions, and airflow is automatically regulated by the automatic controlunit of the apparatus.

When dehumidification is required the process of adsorption of moistureout of the cabin air stream is activated by directing a cool air streamthrough the desiccant material which causes the moisture to transfer tothe desiccant. The cool air stream enters the cabin as dehumidified air.After dehumidification has been accomplished the air temperature may befurther conditioned by either raising or lowering the temperature beforethe air goes into the cabin.

The second phase of the process of dehumidification is the removal ofthe moisture from the desiccant to regenerate the desiccant and preparethe desiccant for another adsorption cycle. The removal of the moisturefrom the desiccant is accomplished by evaporation when a hot air streampasses through the hydrous desiccant causing the moisture to transferinto the hot air stream by evaporation which is then expelled from theapparatus.

Humidification of the cabin air is accomplished in a similar processwhich is simply reversed, with the hot air stream going to the cabin asopposed the cold air stream. The hot humid air stream may also befurther conditioned to regulate the air temperature before the airenters the cabin. The process is automatically controlled and performedefficiently since the heat required for regeneration is supplied fromexcess engine heat or excess heat from the air-conditioner cooling unit.The process provides a benefit when humidity is added to a heated airmass and moisture is removed from a cooled air mass. The apparatus mayalso independently alter the relative humidity of the air stream whenthe cabin heating and air-conditioning cooling unit is not activated.

The inventive apparatus size, air flow sequence, desiccant element sizeand shape, case type, and specific functions may vary to meet thespecified needs of the motorized vehicle. Although the differentalternatives, methods, apparatus, and configurations describe herein asbest suited for preferred applications this in no way limits theinvention from using variations of the alternative processes, describedmethods, apparatus and variations of configurations of the apparatuswhich are described herein.

In the large commercial aircraft the embodiment may consist of a unitcontaining a desiccant wheel or an adaptive canister case systemconsisting of various shapes and quantities of canisters depending onthe requirements of the current cabin environmental system, availabilityof compartment space and cabin layout. The apparatus may be designedinto a new motorized vehicle or adapted to an existing design vehiclealready produced where the apparatus is an after market unit adapted toan operating motorized vehicle.

While an aircraft is loaded with people on the ground in hot humidclimate before take off the cabin may need dehumidification to maintainpassenger comfort. When an aircraft is on the ground the inventiveapparatus may perform dehumidification from a ground unit connected tothe aircraft by flexible duct hoses. While the aircraft is in flight avariation on the apparatus may provide humidification for the cabinfresh air supply by increasing the relative humidity of the hotcompressed air provided by the engine to the cabin.

Some smaller aircraft may use only an apparatus with the automaticdehumidification function to defog/defrost the inside of the cockpitwindshield glass. In each case the apparatus is using variations on thebasic inventive methods to perform the intended function describedherein and a particular embodiment may include one or more of thefeatures described.

The automatic control of relative humidity provides comfortable andhealthful air for the occupants, safety for the operator of themotorized vehicle by automatically eliminating or preventing fog/frost(condensation) on the inside of the windshield, and efficiency to theair-conditioning unit both in size and energy consumption. Efficiency inoperating the apparatus is attained through the inventive methods thatutilize in most cases, excess heat normally expelled into the atmosphereor through redirection of the conventional heating or recirculating airsources through the apparatus. The invention does not requires anexternal (liquid) water source to humidify, nor does it produce a(liquid) out put of water within the apparatus while it isdehumidifying.

The humidification of the aircraft cabin air is accomplished by theinventive method of passing the stale cabin air containing moisture,through the desiccant coated honeycomb material where the moisture inthe cool air is adsorbed into the desiccant material before the staleair is ejected from the aircraft. During the circulation of freshoutside air into the cabin and before the release of stale cabin air,the moisture in the stale air is extracted by a desiccant material asthe stale air is allowed to flow out through the desiccant wheel orcanister and the moisture is adsorbed into the desiccant material, thenthe air flow to the moist portion of the desiccant is altered to allowthe fresh hot air to pass over the moist desiccant material to receivethe moisture contained in the desiccant when the heat in the hot aircauses the moisture to evaporate out of the desicant.

The alternation of the desiccant cycle is accomplished when thedesiccant material collecting moisture from the stale moist cabin airapproaches the saturation point, the apparatus alters the air flow so asto position the desiccant where a stream of hot fresh air, from thecompressor section of the engine, used for heating the cabin will passover the surface of the desiccant material.

The fresh hot dry air from the compressor section of the engine or anyother heated air source will cause the moisture in the desiccant toevaporate into the hot air stream. The resulting moist fresh hot air isdirected into the cabin to provide the passengers with a comfortableenvironment thus eliminating the problem of dry cabin air without theneed to transport water and utilize conventional humidification methods.

In summary, on long high altitude flights, the desiccant materialremoves the moisture from the stale cabin air before the air is ejectedfrom the aircraft. The desiccant is repositioned into a hot air streamand then releases the moisture back into the fresh hot air from theengine compressor before the air goes into the cabin. A heat exchangermay be used to regulate the temperature of the hot moist air before itenters the cabin.

The inventive apparatus may consist of two different types of desiccantassemblies: a desiccant wheel or a desiccant canister.

A desiccant wheel is preferably constructed of NOMEX honeycomb, rolledcorrugated cardboard, or similar structure wheel consisting of a lightweight structure allowing air to freely pass through the wheel with acoating of desiccant on the r of the structure to provide the maximumsurface area exposed to the air flow or a material with desiccantintegral to the structure or a combination of both coated and integraldesiccant. The smaller wheels may have a center torque drive and thelarger wheels may have either a center torque drive or a perimeter beltand pulley drive system to slowly rotate the wheel.

A desiccant canister is preferably constructed of NOMEX honeycomb orsimilar structured material contained in a case of metal, plastic, orother structural material. The honeycomb is positioned in the case toallow the air to flow into the case through an input opening in the casewhere the air passes through the tubular structure of the honeycomb thenout of the output opening of the case. The input and output openings areconnected to a rotary air valve, slide air valves or damper type valvesto alternate the airflow's between a pair of canisters. As one canistercompleted the adsorption cycle and the other canister completes theevaporation cycle the valve changes the air flow between the canisters.Additional pairs of canisters may be provided to level the air pressurein the line during cycle changes and offer greater system capacity.

The process is automatically controlled by the electronic control unitthrough sensors measuring temperature and relative humidity within theapparatus and also external to the apparatus, and then automaticallyregulating the desired relative humidity level in the cabin byactivating the humidification process to add moisture. The control unitmay stop the process by either turning off the power to the desiccantwheel rotary torque motor or by not recycling the crossover valve andallowing the air stream to continue to flow through the same desiccantcanister after it is saturated or regenerated. The apparatus has airfilters to prevent a build up of dust, dirt, or foreign matter on thesurface of the desiccant material.

In addition to the inventions standard method of aircraft cabin airhumidification by removing moisture from stale air before it isexpelled, the method may be expanded to include another source ofmoisture from the ambient (outside) air. The outside air is used as anadditional source from which moisture is also adsorbed by the desiccantas the outside air flows through the apparatus. After the desiccantadsorbs the moisture out of the ambient air source, the dry air is thenexpelled back to the outside atmosphere.

The automatic control unit of the apparatus determines when the cabinrelative humidity needs to activate the duel air sources forhumidification. This may only be necessary when the apparatus is unableto obtain enough moisture from it's primary source of moisture byreclaiming cabin moisture. Since the moisture will be adsorbed out ofthe outside air with a significantly lower pressure as compared to theinside cabin air which is at a higher pressure the apparatus must have aseal system to prevent the cabin air from escaping into the outsideatmosphere. The canister type system has many advantages for thisapplication.

In motorized vehicles where cabin air pressure is not a factor but theneed for duel moisture sources exist the inventive apparatus can producethe desired results from a single unit utilizing two different stages orportions of a cycle of the same desiccant to perform both outside airmoisture adsorption and stale air adsorption into the desiccant materialthat will be evaporated out of the desiccant for humidification of cabinair.

Humidification of the cabin air for land or water motorized vehicles isperformed through a method of desiccant humidification where moisture isadsorbed out of stale cabin air before it is expelled from the motorizedvehicle or the moisture is extracted from outside air and thenevaporated into the air stream entering the cabin from the heater. Thehot air source used to perform the evaporation may be eitherrecirculated cabin air or fresh outside air. The humidification isaccomplished without the need to transport water or spray a fine mist ofwater into the impinging air stream or the process of passing the airstream through a water saturated mat. If the temperature required toevaporate the moisture from the desiccant is higher than the desiredcabin heat temperature, and the result of the evaporation of themoisture is also a temperature higher than is desired by the occupantsof the cabin, then a heat exchanger (pre-cooler) is activated by thecontrol unit to lower the temperature of the moist hot air before itenters the cabin. The automatic control unit senses the cabin's relativehumidity and compares the sensor readings to the level set on thedigital automatic control unit. The level may be automatically set bythe control unit or manually set by the occupants of the motorizedvehicle, if the control unit senses the need to increase the relativehumidity to meet the desired relative humidity the control unitactivates the apparatus to add humidity. If the control unit senses thatthe relative humidity has reached the desired level set on the controlunit the system automatically deactivates the humidification function ofthe apparatus. When the automatic digital control unit senses that therelative humidity of the cabin is higher than desired level the systemautomatically activates the dehumidification functions of the unit. Theautomatic control unit which is also connected to the environmentalheating and cooling system may further condition the air before itenters the cabin to regulate the temperature level and air flow volume(CFM).

Desiccant based dehumidification is a component of the inventive methodused as an element of the cabin environmental system providing comfortfor the passengers and is usually associated with the boarding of theaircraft and during the time from ground operations to shortly aftertake off, usually before the cabin heat system has started to lower therelative humidity in the cabin after takeoff.

Many times during boarding passengers experience discomfort from highhumidity due to the physical exertion of boarding the aircraft inconjunction with a hot humid external atmosphere, where the relativehumidity level of the cabin can exceed 80%. Dehumidification of thecabin air during these conditions can significantly improve the comfortof the crew and passengers. During passenger loading and unloading,ground operations (taxi & waiting for take-off), and other times thewhen cabin environmental cooling is necessary, the cabin airdehumidification may either be supplied by an on-board units or groundunits which lower the relative humidity on hot and muggy days to providepassenger comfort when conditions cause high relative humidity in thecabin. As passengers board the aircraft and exert the effort to storebaggage, they often start to sweat and add to what may already be a highrelative humidity for the air mass in the cabin. The addition of a safeand efficient environmental system with humidity control capability willgreatly improve the comfort of the passengers during loading, groundoperations, and early in the flight.

The dehumidification of the cabin air is also believed to significantlyimprove the efficiency of the air-conditioner cooling by removing themoisture before the evaporator coils experience the additional loadrequired to condense out the moisture on a high relative humidity day.

Dehumidification of motorized land or water vehicle's cabin air isperformed through a method of desiccant dehumidification whererecirculated cabin air passes through NOMEX honeycomb or similarstructure material coated with desiccant of either a wheel or canistertype which adsorb the moisture out of the air as it passes over thedesiccant material coated on the surface of the structural material.

The desiccant may also be part of the structural material and/orimbedded in the structure of the wheel or canister. The desiccant mayalso be placed or injected into a rounded, square, or rectangular shapedtube positioned within the center of a larger honeycomb tube structure.The apparatus is also capable of dehumidifying fresh outside air beforeit enters the cabin. The wheel or canister is regenerated and preparedfor the next adsorption cycle when a hot air stream is directed throughthe desiccant material to evaporate off the moisture contained in thedesiccant.

The excess heat of the engine provides the heat used to regenerate thedesiccant and prepare the desiccant for the next adsorption cycle. Anyone or combination of the engine's heat producing systems such as theengine coolant fluid, oil cooler, exhaust manifold, catalytic converter,exhaust pipe, air-conditioner coils or other heat sources may be useeither individually or collectively as a heat source to evaporate themoisture contained in the desiccant.

The system is controlled by an automatic digital control unit where theoccupant sets the desired relative humidity level or the automaticcontrol unit establishes the desired relatively humidity and the unitautomatically selects the necessary process configuration, activates thenecessary components of the apparatus and continues to operate until thedesired relative humidity level is reached after which the apparatus isturned off by the automatic control unit.

In some applications, the automatic control unit also continues tooperate the regeneration side of the system after the engine is turnedoff to prepare the desiccant for the next time the motorized vehicle isstarted. In this case the residual excess engine heat remaining in theengine and exhaust system after the engine is turned off is used toregenerate the desiccant and then the desiccant is isolated from anyoutside moist air by doors or air valves that close to prevent unwantedmoist air from coming in contact with the anhydrous desiccant while thevehicle in not in use. The residual regeneration feature provides forimmediate windshield defog/defrost the next time the engine is started.

The visibility of the pilot and crew while operating a large commercialairliners, small private airplanes, or helicopters is extremely criticalto the safety of the aircraft. Visual impairment of the flight crew orpilot distraction while attempting to clear windshield condensation candirectly contribute to the aircraft safety. The lives on board theaircraft and others on the ground that could be injured by a crash aredependent on the pilot's ability to see clearly outside, especiallyduring landing and take off.

The apparatus uses an automatic control unit that electronicallymonitors relative humidity sensors and windshield temperature sensors toautomatically activate the desiccant dehumidification system prior tothe formation of condensation on the windshield, thereby preventingcondensation from ever forming on the windshield. The automaticfunctioning of the apparatus relieves the pilot of ever having to takeany actions to clear windshield of fog, frost, or condensation.Operational safety is enhanced since the pilot is relieved of thepossibility of distraction from windshield condensation or the need tomake equipment adjustments to eliminate windshield fog or frost.

The operation of the aircraft apparatus is similar to that of the landand sea motorized vehicles apparatus with the exception that the sourceof heat in most cases will be transferred to the apparatus via a hot airstream as opposed to coolant fluid.

This invention, through the use of a desiccant dehumidification system,automatically lowers the relative humidity of the inside cabin air;thereby, preventing or eliminating windshield condensation.

The present invention provides an automatic cabin humidity controlsystem which prevents condensation, frost, or fog from forming on theinside surface of the windshield. The invention may also includeoptional sensors to detect the exterior temperature and humidity. Forexample, when the temperature and humidity approach (the saturationpoint) a level where condensation may form on the windows an automaticcontroller activates the desiccant dehumidification system. Theautomatic control unit sends electrical current to the cabin chamberfan, the rotary motor, the hot chamber fan, and the engine coolant valveto move it to the open position for a desiccant wheel type of apparatus.For the canister type apparatus, a variation of the process where thedesiccant wheel is replaces by a set of desiccant canister, theautomatic control unit activates fan motors to move the air flow throughthe desiccant canisters and begins to alternate the air streams betweenthe duel canisters by periodically activating the crossover valves toregulate the dehumidified air flow to the inside of the windshieldglass. The air stream is dehumidified when it passes through theanhydrous desiccant material. As the desiccant material in the canisterbecomes saturated with moisture the control unit alternates the air flowby activating the input and output crossover valves to redirect the airflow through another canister that has completed the evaporation(regeneration) cycle. Heat exchangers are arranged to heat or cool thevarious air streams when necessary both before and after the air passesthrough the desiccant material.

The apparatus directs a stream of dehumidified air “dry air” toward thewindows to evaporate existing condensation that may exist, or preventsthe formation of new condensation. Additional heat may be applied to theair stream after dehumidification to accelerate the removal ofcondensation on the interior and melt ice or snow on the exterior of theglass. The apparatus is designed to reduce the humidity of the cabin airnear the windows and continue to remove humidity (moisture) until thehumidity level reaches a desired level within the cabin. Since theregeneration of the desiccant wheel or canister is preferablyaccomplished by using the excess heat from the engine, the onlyadditional energy necessary to operate the apparatus is in the form ofelectrical energy to operate the controls, motors, and valves.

Although the desiccant system may use some of the existing air ducts andvents design for the heat and air-conditioning system to deliverdehumidified air, the inventive apparatus and method are designed tofunction independently, such as those times when the need to cool orheat the cabin does not coincide with the need to reduce the relativehumidity.

The inventive apparatus and system can be summarized in a variety ofways, one of which is the following: an apparatus and method fordefrosting or defogging the interior portion of a windshield with animpinging air stream, wherein the windshield surface to be defrosted ordefogged is contained within the cabin compartment of a motorizedvehicle, wherein the apparatus comprises: a rotary desiccant wheel, adriver to rotate the wheel, a heat exchanger (or other heat source), acase having an interior to house the desiccant wheel, a first fan fordrawing air from the cabin compartment of the motorized vehicle andforcing the air through the desiccant wheel to the upper section of thecabin side chamber of the case and back to the cabin of the motorizedvehicle, and a second fan for pulling an air stream through a heatexchanger into the lower chamber of the hot section of the case and thenthrough the desiccant wheel to the upper chamber of the hot section ofthe case where the second fan ejects the hot moist air to atmosphere.

The desiccant wheel rotates within the cabin and hot chambers of thecase to enable the desiccant material applied to the desiccant wheel tofirst collect moisture in the cabin chamber and then releases themoisture in the hot chamber. This is accomplished by the delivery of themoist cabin air to half of the desiccant wheel by the first fan wherethe moisture is adsorbed by the desiccant. As the dry air exits thewheel it is directed back into the cabin. The desiccant wheel slowlyrotates into the hot chamber where the second fan pulls in air fromatmosphere across the heating elements of the heat exchanger then thehot air enters the hot half of the desiccant wheel to evaporate off themoisture that was previously adsorbed by the desiccant in the cabin sideof the apparatus. The hot chamber recharges (evaporates the moisture)the desiccant wheel to prepare it for it's next cycle through the cabinside of the apparatus. The now dry desiccant material on this portion ofthe wheel rotates back into the cabin chamber to continue the repetitivecycle.

To provide instant windshield defrost/defog action as soon as the engineis started, an after shut down regeneration feature may also be anelement of the invention where the apparatus continues to regenerate thedesiccant material after engine shut down to completely regenerate allor a portion of the desiccant material and then isolate this materialuntil the engine is restarted. The residual engine heat would betransferred to the heat exchanger by the coolant fluid and used toevaporate the moisture as the hot side fan forces hot air through thedesiccant to continue or start up the regeneration process for thedesiccant after engine shut down while the desiccant wheel torque motorand the cabin side fan is off. When the regeneration is complete or theresidual engine heat is depleted the automatic control unit deactivatesall the fans and motors, and closes vent doors or air valves to theregenerated desiccant to isolate the desiccant material from any outside air that may contain moisture.

For the desiccant canister version of the apparatus the instant actionis provided in a similar manner where the air flow through theevaporation side of the process continues to flow to regenerate thedesiccant material after engine shut down while the fan for theadsorption side of the apparatus and the cross over valves aredeactivated the hot coolant fluid continues to transfer the residualheat from the engine to perform the regeneration until the heat isdepleted or the regeneration is complete after which the evaporationside fan motor is deactivated and the desiccant material is isolatedfrom any source of moisture when doors are closed on both ends of thedesiccant canister. The doors or air valves may either be separate doorsfrom the crossover valve or one of the close positions of the crossovervalve. When the vehicle is started the automatic control unit may sensesthe need for dehumidification to defog/defrost the inside of thewindshield glass and there is a source of anhydrous desiccant completelyregenerated which can instantly perform the dehumidification.

The invention may also include a cabin air baffle (valve) to direct thedehumidified cabin air from the invention into the air-conditioningsystem return air to reduce/eliminate the build up of frost on thecooling coils in the air-conditioner. The baffle would only be activatedto direct air to the air-conditioner after the system sensors andcontrol system determined that the need to lower the humidity forwindshield defog/defrosting had been accomplished, the air-conditionerwas on, and the humidity level was high enough to warrant the need fordehumidification to eliminate frost or improve the efficiency of theunit.

The preferred fan arrangement is configured to provide positive pressureon the cabin side and negative pressure on the hot side of the case. Thefan configuration will force any air leakage from the cabin side to thehot side and the design further incorporates seals to prevent air flowfrom the hot side to the cabin.

The optional sensors are included in this alternative of the inventionto provide information to the automatic electronic humidity controlunit. The sensors transmit data used by the control device fordetermining when the windshield is approaching the dew point. This isaccomplished by the sensors providing both cabin air and windshieldinternal and external temperature, and relative humidity information tothe control device. The electronic control device uses the sensor datato determine when to turn on/off the apparatus and also displaystemperature and relative humidity information so the occupant(s) mayadjust the desired humidity to a lower level for comfort after thesystem has eliminated the possibility of fog/frost on the windshield.

The invention also includes a method of removing condensation from theinterior cabin compartment of a motorized vehicle, which can besummarized as including the following steps: monitoring the temperatureand humidity level of the cabin of a motorized vehicle, regulating thehumidity level of the cabin by electronically controlling the apparatusto automatically turn the system on when condensation could form on thewindshield of the cabin, dehumidifying the air extracted from the cabinby passing the air through rotating desiccant material or desiccantcanister during a dehumidification cycle, recharging the desiccant withhot air then expelling the moist hot air from the apparatus outside thesystem, introducing a dehumidified air stream into the cabin compartmentof a motor vehicle to lower the relative humidity in the cabin toprevent/remove fog/frost on the windows.

The desiccant canister type apparatus consisting of duel desiccantcanisters containing honeycomb coated with desiccant material andconnected to inflow and outflow crossover valves and work in conjunctionwith heat exchangers which are controlled by the automatic control unitto heat or cool the air stream. The automatic control unit for thecanister type apparatus either opens or closes the coolant valves and/oractivates the coolant pump to circulate the coolant through the heatexchangers. The automatic control unit either utilizes a timer to setthe interval between cycles or sensors are utilized to measure theevaporation and adsorption rate of the desiccant within the canister todetermine when to alternate the adsorption and evaporation canisters sothat as one canister becomes saturated with moisture, it is replaced inthe air stream by another canister that has just completed anevaporation cycle.

The apparatus can be summarized in a variety of ways one of which is thefollowing: an automatic electronic humidity control device to receivedata from the temperature and humidity sensors and determines if therelative humidity is approaching the dew point on the inside of thewindshield, the electronic humidity control device controls theactivation of the fans, motors, heat exchangers and valves to start orstop the dehumidification process, a fan first passes cabin air througha rotating desiccant wheel driven by a torque motor to remove themoisture from the cabin air then forces the dehumidified air back intothe cabin, another fan pulls air from atmosphere to be heated by theheat exchanger then the hot air is used to recharge the desiccantmaterial on the wheel as the wheel rotates into the hot chamber, the hotmoist air is then expelled back into the atmosphere by the fan and thedesiccant wheel continues it's rotation back into the cabin side chamberof the case to perform another cycle of dehumidification, the controldevice provides the occupants with an adjustment option to set thedesired relative humidity for the unit so it will continue to lower therelative humidity below the point where the automatic control would turnthe system off.

For both the desiccant wheel and desiccant canister type apparatus thedehumidified air stream passing through the anhydrous desiccant is cool.As the dehydrated cool air stream exits the honeycomb desiccant coatedmaterial the air may be passed through a heat exchanger to increase thetemperature of the air stream which will increase the capacity of theair to defog/defrost the windshield glass.

The Automatic Digital Control Unit for land based vehicles consist ofthree different types of control. The first, is a full feature unitwhich automatically determines the desired settings for the unit basedon sensor readings of temperature and humidity both inside and outsidethe vehicle. The occupant sets the unit on automatic and the unit willcontinue to control the environmental system by monitoring the outsideair temperature and relative humidity and based on these readings thecontrol unit will automatically set the preferred temperature, fanspeed, and relative humidity.

Since the occupants are dressed with warmer clothing in the winter andthey are comfortable in a cooler temperature the automatic control unitsets the thermostat mechanism lower than 72° F. As the temperatureoutside decreases the setting by the automatic controller is lowered.When it is very cold the setting may be 67° F., and as the outside airtemperature increases the setting will be automatically increased up to72° F. in cold weather.

The temperature settings are pre-established and make up an element ofthe environmental profile which over may adjust the cabin airtemperature during the time of operation and may provide a highertemperature when heat is first provided to warn the occupants when theyinitially enter the vehicle and as the seats and occupants warm up theautomatic control unit begins to lower the temperature to maintainperfect comfort without the occupant having to make any environmentalcontrol adjustments. When the control unit is set to the automaticfeature the system is automatically activated when the occupant startsthe vehicle. The automatic control unit will also maintain the relativehumidity setting in the center of the relative humidity zone of comfortas the temperature setting is automatically adjusted by the unit. Whenthe automatic control unit senses that the relative humidity is outsideof the desired range the control unit will activate the dehumidificationor humidification even with the heating or cooling deactivated.

During warm or hot climate conditions such as summer the automaticcontrol unit senses the outside conditions an automatically adjust thetemperature cooling settings and the relative humidity settings.Depending on the outside air temperature the control unit may set thetemperature in a range of 73° F. to 79° F. for the cabin and alsoregulate the relative humidity as the control unit regulates the airstream to the selected predetermined temperature profile to control theapparatus as it cools down the occupants with a lower temperature whenthey first start the vehicle and then as the occupant's bodies arecooled the temperature is increased along the temperature profile to astatic level above the cool down temperature.

The automatic control unit considers the readings of the outside airtemperature and relative humidity when it selects the desired profile.The fan speed is also regulated by the automatic control unit to providea higher volume of air when increased heating or cooling is determinedto be necessary by the control unit where there is a large difference inthe desired and actual cabin temperature or during the warm up or cooldown phase of the profile. The automatic profile feature of the controlunit would determine the temperature setting, relative humidity settingand fan speed for the system; and then activate the functions of theapparatus to deliver the desired conditions. The environmental profileestablished temperature and fan speed profile may be adjusted by theoccupants to replace the factory established profiles.

If the occupants wish to return the settings to the factory profilethere is a reset button available to quickly reset these adjustments tothe factory settings. The second mode of the control unit is a manualsetting unit, where the occupant sets the desired temperature, humidity,and air velocity and the automatic control unit controls the operationof the apparatus to meet the desired settings established by theoccupant. The third, is a mode where the occupant turns the system on oroff and manually sets the unit to operate at either high, medium, orlow. A vehicle may have a control unit capable of utilizing one or moreof the three modes listed above with a selector to allow the occupant toselect which type is desired at any given time. All of the preferredembodiments of the units have an automatic defog, defrost feature wherethe windshield is automatically defrosted when the sensors relay thetemperature and relative humidity information to the control and thecontrol unit processor determines that defrosting is necessary toprevent the formation of condensation on the windshield and activatesthe apparatus to prevent or remove the condensation.

For the benefit of explanation the previous descriptions have generallybeen separated into either humidification or dehumidificationdescriptions. Although the inventive apparatus can take the form of asingle function apparatus, the apparatus with the greatest benefit tothe occupants is one in which the automatic control unit regulates thecombined functions of humidification or dehumidification of the cabinair and defrost/defog of the windshield glass are provided in a singleunit incorporating the environmental heating and cooling systems.

The apparatus is capable of total automation where the occupants maynever activate or adjust the environmental control system and theapparatus delivers the highest level of environmental comfort. Thepresent invention describes a method and apparatus for adding humidityto heated air for motorized vehicles utilizing a desiccant based system.The humidification is accomplished without using water as a spray(atomized) or dripping water on a mat material for evaporation. Theapparatus does not require the motorized vehicle to transport acontainer of water since the moisture used for humidification isextracted out of another air source.

Another alternative to humidification is described in this inventivemethod and apparatus where humidity can also be removed from the cabinair before the air returns to the cabin. The automatic control unitautomatically selects and activates the desired alternative after itdetermines if humidification or dehumidification is needed. In motorizedvehicles, the defrost/defog, dehumidification and humidificationfunction may be performed while the motorized vehicle's environmentalsystem is using only recirculating air in the cabin and the cabinheating and cooling may be deactivated during humidity conditioning.

Depending on the space available and the environmental systemrequirements the configuration of desiccant honeycomb structure may varybetween two alternative methods of passing the air over the desiccantmaterial:

1.) A desiccant wheel is used to perform waterless humidification ofheated air by adsorbing the humidity out of a cool air stream afterwhich the air is expelled into atmosphere, following the adsorptioncycle is the evaporation cycle where the moisture is released out of thedesiccant wheel into a heated air stream which will be used to heat thecabin of a motorized vehicle.

The desiccant wheel slowly rotates through two separate chambers as themoisture is transferred from one air stream to the other. As the airpasses through the first chamber where the cool air containing varyingamounts of humidity is adsorbed into the desiccant material coated onthe wheel. The desiccant wheel consist of a series of small cylindricalair passage ways, or tubes of a variety of shapes (hexagonal or round,or corrugated, honeycomb NOMEX etc.) either coated with or consisting ofmaterial containing desiccant. As the air passes through the cylindricaltubes, the moisture is adsorbed out of the air stream into the desiccantmaterial. The wheel slowly rotates out of the first chamber into thesecond chamber. In the second chamber the heat from the hot air passingthrough the wheel causes the moisture in the desiccant material toevaporate into the hot air stream.

In a variation to this embodiment, the first chamber, where the moistureis adsorbed into the desiccant wheel may be divided into two stages.With the two adsorption stage system, the air from which the moisture isadsorbed may be provided from two separate sources. In thisconfiguration, the (dry) anhydrous desiccant wheel would enter the firststage of the cool chamber through which the lowest humidity air sourceis passing to adsorb the available moisture. The wheel would then rotatetoward the second stage source of cool air with the highest availablehumidity. Then the desiccant wheel would rotate into the hot air streamchamber where the moisture previously adsorbed into the desiccant wouldevaporate into the hot air stream. The evaporation of moisture thattakes place in the hot chamber would recharge the desiccant wheel toprepare the wheel for the next adsorption cycle.

This process would repeat itself until the humidity reaches the desiredlevel. The automatic control unit would then turn off the fans, torquemotors, and close the valves to the heat exchangers. This multi-stagealternative enables the system to extract moisture from internal airbefore it is expelled outside, and also extract moisture from anexternal air source that would also be expelled outside. The automaticcontrol unit sensors indicate the air mass with the greatest moisturecontent and the automatic control unit would then activate the wheeltorque motor to rotate in the desired direction.

2.) In the alternative, an adaptive canister containing NOMEX honeycombcoated with desiccant (or other corrugated shaped material coated withdesiccant) may be positioned so as to allow the air to flow through thesmall passages formed by the structure of the honeycomb is used toperform the desired result of either humidification or dehumidificationof the air going to the cabin. This method uses multiple canisters tosustain a constant air flow by switching from one canister to another soas to allow the desiccant filler to go through the adsorption cycle inone (or some) of the canisters while another (or others) are goingthrough the regenerative cycle. The switching of the air into and out ofthe canisters is accomplished by either a rotary valve or a series ofelectronically controlled slide valves or gate valves.

The method of the present invention may be summarized in a variety ofways, one of which is the following: a method of altering the humiditylevel of a passenger cabin of a motorized vehicle having a windshieldwith an interior surface, comprising the steps of: providing a desiccantbased moisture collection means or device for collecting moisture fromair; positioning the moisture collection means or device in the path ofan air stream; providing a heat source capable of emitting heatsufficient to evaporate moisture from an air stream; positioning themoisture collection means or device in communication with the heatsource; evaporating the moisture removed by the moisture collectionmeans or device into the atmosphere; and directing the air stream fromwhich the moisture was evaporated into or out of the passenger cabin ofa motorized vehicle.

Positioning the moisture collection means or device in the path of anair stream may further include the step of: providing communication withan air stream originating from a source external to the passenger cabin;providing communication with an air stream originating from a sourceinternal to the passenger cabin; or, providing communication with an airstream originating from a combination of sources including at least onesource internal to the passenger cabin and at least one source externalto the passenger cabin.

Directing the air stream from which the moisture was recovered into thepassenger cabin of a motorized vehicle may include: directing the airstream at the interior surface of the windshield; directing the airstream from which the moisture was recovered to an evaporator forlowering the temperature of the air stream from which the moisture wasrecovered enabling the evaporator to operate more efficiently; directingthe air stream to a pre-cooler prior to delivery to the cabin.

The method may also include providing at least one heat exchanger meansfor adjusting the temperature of an air stream; selectively divertingthe path of the air stream, in which moisture collection means ispositioned, away from the moisture collection means to enablesubstantially complete evaporation of moisture by the heat source fromthe moisture collection means; or, providing a system of sensors capableof monitoring the environmental conditions to which the cabin of amotorized vehicle is subject, and selectively performing the stepsassociated with altering the humidity level.

The present invention may also be summarized as follows: a method ofaltering the humidity level of a device having a holding compartmentsubject to induced environmental conditions, the method comprising thesteps of providing a desiccant based moisture collection means forcollecting moisture from air; positioning the moisture collection meansin the path of an air stream; providing a heat source capable ofemitting heat sufficient to evaporate moisture from an air stream;positioning the moisture collection means in communication with the heatsource; evaporating the moisture removed by the moisture collectionmeans into the atmosphere; and directing the air stream from which themoisture was evaporated into the holding compartment. The method mayalso include the step of providing a refrigerated holding compartment.

An apparatus of the present invention may be summarized as follows: anapparatus for regulating the humidity level of the cabin compartment ofa motorized vehicle having a windshield, the apparatus comprising:dehumidification means for dehumidifying an air stream, wherein thedehumidification means partially comprises a filler component with amoisture absorbing desiccant substance applied to its surface, and acanister having an interior, an inlet and an outlet; means for drawingair from a source thereof and directing the drawn air to the inlet ofthe canister enabling the dehumidification means to extract moisturefrom drawn air; and a heat exchanger for extracting heat from themotorized vehicle and delivering it to the interior of the canister todry the desiccant material after it has absorbed moisture.

The heat exchanger may be configured to extract heat from the enginecompartment of the motorized vehicle. The apparatus may further comprisea system of baffles positioned within the canister to direct the flow ofair through the dehumidification means, or an exhaust means forexpelling dry air from the canister through the outlet of the housing.The filler may be a desiccant wheel, or have a system of corrugationscomprising a plurality of cells having a substantially hexagonalperimeter and at least one divider for dividing the plurality of cellsinto subcells for increasing the available surface area and strengthassociated with each cell. The subcells may be filled with a solidmaterial. The desiccant wheel may include a center drive means foroperating the wheel.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for anda method of desiccant humidification of the cabin air of a motorizedvehicle to increase the relative humidity of the air contained in thecabin. The desiccant adsorbs moisture out of the stale cabin air beforeit is released from the cabin into the atmosphere after which themoisture contained in the desiccant material is then released into thefresh air stream to raise the relative humidity of the fresh air beforeentering the cabin.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a desiccant basedapparatus which is capable of continuously humidifying a fresh airstream from the atmosphere which is forced into the cabin of a motorizedvehicle. The apparatus adsorbs the moisture out of the stale cabin airas the stale cabin air passes through a desiccant material before theair exits the cabin into the atmosphere and the moisture in thedesiccant material is later released into the fresh air stream enteringthe cabin through evaporation which increases the relative humidity ofthe fresh air stream.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for anda method of environmental air conditioning where the air stream iscontinuously humidity conditioned by a process where the position of adesiccant material or the air stream which is entering a desiccantmaterial is altered or alternated to provide continuous humidificationor dehumidification of the intended air mass and the heat energy ofregeneration is provided from excess engine heat.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for anda method of desiccant humidification where the moisture contained instale cabin air is reclaimed out of the stale air and reintroduced intothe fresh air stream which then enters the cabin of a motorized aircraftin order to increase the relative humidity of the fresh air stream.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for anda method of air craft cabin environmental humidity air conditioningthrough desiccant based humidification which reclaims moisture fromstale cabin air which is then evaporated into fresh outside air enteringthe cabin to lower the level of carbon dioxide by increasing the ratioof fresh outside air as compared to the ratio of stale cabin air withoutlowering the cabin relative humidity below the human comfort level of35% R.H.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for anda method of desiccant relative humidity control air conditioning for thecabin air of a motorized vehicle where the excess vehicle engine heat orthe heat created from the act of compressing the fresh air going to thecabin as it passes through or over the surface of the desiccant materialcause the moisture in the desiccant to evaporate into the air stream.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatuscontained within a non pressurized aircraft cabin compartment or withinany other area of the aircraft where two different air streams eachpassed through separate sections of a single or multiple rotatingdesiccant wheel to accomplish the adsorption and evaporation of moistureinto and out of the desiccant material for cabin humidification. Wherethe source of moisture is cold fresh outside air passing through oneside of the desiccant wheel and returning to the atmosphere, after whichhot air performs the evaporation of the moisture out of the desiccantmaterial into the air entering the cabin.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatuscontained within the cabin compartment of a motorized vehicle or anyother area of the vehicle where two different air streams each passedthrough separate sections of a single or multiple rotating desiccantwheel to accomplish the adsorption and evaporation of moisture into andout of the desiccant material for cabin humidification. Where the sourceof moisture is cool stale air from the cabin passing through one side ofthe desiccant wheel and expelled into the atmosphere, after which hotair performs the evaporation of the moisture out of the desiccantmaterial into the air entering the cabin.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatuscontained within the cabin compartment of a motorized vehicle or anyother area of the vehicle where three different air streams each passedthrough separate sections of a single or multiple rotating desiccantwheel to accomplish the adsorption and evaporation of moisture into andout of the desiccant material for cabin humidification. Where the sourceof moisture is both cool stale cabin air and cold outside air passingthrough one side of the desiccant wheel and expelled into theatmosphere, after which hot air performs the evaporation of the moistureout of the desiccant material into the air entering the cabin.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus wherethe air flow and desiccant wheel rotation are controlled by an automaticcontrol unit which monitors the process through temperature and relativehumidity sensors and then activates the motors and valves to regulatethe level of relative humidity within the cabin.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a process where theadsorption and evaporation of moisture into and out of a desiccantmaterial for the purpose of raising the relative humidity of the cabinair is accomplished with excess heat present in the compressed airentering the cabin.

It is yet another object of the present invention to provide anapparatus where the expansion of the cabin air of a pressurized cabin asit escapes to atmosphere provides the cooling for a heat exchanger whenthe air passes through a regulator valve into an expansion chamber witha lower air pressure. The expansion chamber is vented to atmospherethrough a regulator valve which allows the stale cabin air to escapeinto atmosphere. The cooling provided by the heat exchanger/expansionchamber serves to cool the stale air before it passes through thedesiccant material during the adsorption phase and also cools the hotcompressed air from the engine used to evaporate the moisture after thehot air passes through the desiccant during the evaporation phase toregulate the cabin temperature.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a process ofautomatically regulating the relative humidity of the cabin air of amotorized vehicle through the use of a desiccant apparatus;automatically eliminating frost, fog or condensation on the surface ofthe windshield glass of a motorized vehicle; automatically preventingthe formation of condensation, fog or frost on the surface of thewindshield glass of a motorized vehicle.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a process ofautomatically regulating the relative humidity of the cabin air of amotorized vehicle through the use of a desiccant apparatus. Where anAutomatic Control Unit (ACU) consisting of temperature and relativehumidity sensors, a display unit with display features and occupantcontrol selection switches, an electronic control processor andelectrical output switches to activate, deactivate and regulate theother components of the inventive apparatus. Although the capability ofthe ACU may vary from regulating one element of the relative humidity toa complete environmental control unit, the desiccant invention must havea control method to produce the desired results.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a process ofautomatically eliminating frost, fog or condensation on the surface ofthe windshield glass of a motorized vehicle through the use ofdesiccants where the Automatic Control Unit (ACU) monitors a set ofsensors to automatically detects the formation of fog, frost, or othercondensation on the inside surface of the windshield glass and thenautomatically activates the components of the inventive apparatus toeliminates the condensation which may have formed on the inside of thewindshield glass.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a process ofautomatically preventing the formation of condensation, fog or frost onthe surface of the windshield glass of a motorized vehicle through theuse of desiccants where the Automatic Control Unit (ACU) monitors a setof sensors to detect the environmental conditions which may approach apoint which could cause fog, frost or other condensation to form on theinside of the windshield glass. The ACU automatically activates thecomponents of the inventive apparatus prior to the formation of anycondensation to assure the occupants of the motorized vehicle never havetheir visibility impaired by the formation of condensation while thevehicle is in operation.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide an inventiveapparatus which may utilize a center drive desiccant wheel consisting ofa honeycomb NOMEX wheel which has a (metal &/or plastic) center splinedrive to support the desiccant wheel and provide the transfer of torquefrom the torque motor to the wheel. A reduction gear box may provide thenecessary RPM reduction from the motor to the slowly rotating desiccantwheel. A metal &/or plastic band may encase the perimeter of the wheeland attached to the wheel by a permanent bond with an adhesive toprovide structural support and prevent abrasion of the NOMEX honeycombwhere the wheel contacts the seals or case during rotation.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide an inventiveapparatus which may utilize an adaptive desiccant canister case in placeof the desiccant wheel, where the air flow through a set of desiccantcanisters is alternated between the individual canisters to provide acontinuous adsorption and evaporation process.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide an inventiveapparatus which may have a set of vent doors (air valves) which may beutilized to configure the air flow through the apparatus in such a wayas to allow the apparatus to continue to regenerate the desiccantmaterial after the motor is shut down by utilizing the residual heatfrom the motor and then when regeneration is complete the vent doors areconfigured to isolate the desiccant from air exterior to the apparatus.The storage of regenerated desiccant allows the apparatus to deliver aninstant dehumidified air stream immediately after the next engine startup. Dehumidified air may be delivered by the apparatus before the motorhas heated up to a temperature capable of providing the necessary heatfor evaporation.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide an inventivemethod and apparatus capable of delivering a humidified air stream tothe cabin or a dehumidified air stream to the cabin; and/or adefog/defrost dehumidified ambient or heated air stream to thewindshield from a recirculated air source originating from the cabin.The invention is unique due to it's ability to deliver humidification,dehumidification, and/or defog by using recirculated cabin air whichallows the occupants to avoid the need to introduce smoke or othernoxious gases into the vehicle from the exterior of the vehicle whileconditioning the air in the event that the vehicle is passing through anundesirable air mass.

These and other objects, advantages and features of the presentinvention shall become apparent after consideration of the specificationand drawings set forth herein, and all such objects, advantages andfeatures are contemplated within the scope of the present inventionwhose only limitation is the scope of the appended claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic side view of an embodiment of the apparatus of thepresent invention in an automobile application;

FIG. 2 is a schematic top view showing the rotation of the desiccantwheel of the apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a schematic side view, with arrows to show the air flowdirection, of the overall system of FIG. 1 including components of arepresentative motorized vehicle;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged schematic side view of some of the componentsshown in FIG. 3, with arrows showing air flow and hot water(coolant)flow direction, and electrical wiring;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged schematic of the apparatus case and componentsshown in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a detailed side view of the torque drive system and the sealcomponent, dividing the cabin and hot chamber shown in FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the apparatus of FIG. 4;

FIG. 8A is a perspective view of the lower case and components of theapparatus of FIG. 7 with the top cover and desiccant wheel removedtherefrom;

FIG. 8B is a partial cross-section of the hot chamber side of the caseportion of the apparatus shown in FIG. 7;

FIG. 9A is a perspective of the embodiment of the desiccant wheel of thepresent invention;

FIG. 9B is a front view of an alternate embodiment of the desiccantwheel shown in FIG. 9A;

FIG. 10 is a partially fragmented perspective view of a portion of thewheel shown in FIG. 9A;

FIG. 11 is a schematic view of the air flow pattern of the inventionshown in use in a helicopter embodiment of the system;

FIGS. 12 and 13 are detailed schematic views of the invention shown inFIG. 11;

FIG. 14 is a summary chart listing sources of moisture, sources of heat,and a summarized list of the inventive methods.

FIG. 15 is a method flow chart showing how fresh outside air is heatedand humidified to increase the relative humidity of the cabin air.

FIG. 16 is a method flow chart showing how recirculated cabin air isheated and humidified to increase the relative humidity of the cabinair.

FIG. 17 is a method flow chart showing how recirculated cabin air isdehumidified to lower the relative humidity of the cabin air.

FIG. 18 is a method flow chart showing how fresh outside air isdehumidified to lower the relative humidity of the fresh air going intothe cabin.

FIG. 19 is a method flow chart showing how the relative humidity of thecabin recirculated air is lowered before the dehumidified air goesthrough the air-conditioner evaporator cooling unit thus increasing theefficiency of the air-conditioner.

FIG. 20 is a method flow chart showing how the relative humidity offresh air going into the cabin is lowered before the air goes throughthe air-conditioner evaporator cooling unit to increase the efficiencyof the air-conditioner.

FIG. 21 is a method flow chart showing how recirculated cabin isdehumidified and then used to defog/defrost the inside surface of thewindshield.

FIG. 22 is a method flow chart showing how fresh outside air isdehumidified and then used to defog/defrost the inside surface of thewindshield.

FIG. 23 is a summary chart showing the general functions and benefits ofthe inventive method.

FIG. 24 is a diagram showing the desiccant process of humidification ofa fresh air stream going into an aircraft cabin from the enginecompressor to increase the relative humidity of the cabin.

FIG. 25 is a diagram showing the source of moisture and the air flow forthe desiccant humidification of an aircraft cabin.

FIG. 26 is a concept drawing showing a desiccant based aircraft cabinhumidification system utilizing a desiccant wheel where the source ofmoisture is the outside air.

FIG. 27 is a concept drawing showing a desiccant based aircraft cabinhumidification system utilizing a desiccant wheel where the source ofmoisture is the stale cabin air before it is expelled from the aircraft.

FIG. 28 is a concept drawing showing a desiccant based aircraft cabinhumidification system utilizing a desiccant wheel where there is a duelsource of moisture.

FIG. 29 is a drawing showing a desiccant based aircraft cabinhumidification system utilizing a desiccant wheel.

FIG. 30 is a schematic showing a desiccant wheel aircraft cabinhumidification system.

FIG. 31 is a schematic showing a desiccant based aircraft cabinhumidification system utilizing a desiccant wheel including a coolingunit to lower the air temperature of both the fresh air after it ishumidified and also the old stale air before the moisture is adsorbedinto the desiccant wheel.

FIG. 32 is a schematic showing a desiccant based aircraft cabinhumidification system utilizing a desiccant wheel including a coolingunit to lower the air temperature of the fresh air after it ishumidified. The stale cabin air is not cooled before it passes throughthe desiccant wheel.

FIG. 33 is a diagram showing the adsorption of moisture by a desiccantcanister from stale cabin air before the air is released into theatmosphere.

FIG. 34 is a schematic drawing showing a duel alternating desiccantcanister process where one canister is in the adsorption cycle while theother is in the evaporation (regeneration) cycle.

FIG. 35 is a schematic drawing showing a duel alternating desiccantcanister process where one canister is in the adsorption cycle while theother is in the evaporation cycle included is the crossover valve andthe fresh air cooling unit.

FIG. 36 is a block diagram of an aircraft canister desiccant processwhere a single crossover valve is utilized to alternate the air flowboth into and out of the canisters.

FIG. 37 is a block diagram showing the airflow through the rotarycrossover valve.

FIG. 38 is a cutaway drawing of a desiccant canister.

FIG. 39 is a cutaway drawing of a desiccant canister showing how thecanister can be adapted to various shape and size requirements.

FIG. 40 is a cutaway drawing top view of the air flow, baffles, andhoneycomb orientation in a desiccant canister.

FIG. 41A is a cut away of a desiccant canister which also serves as acrash adsorption panel with a center input and out flow opening.

FIG. 41B is a cut away of a desiccant canister which also serves as acrash adsorption panel with an off set input and out flow opening.

FIG. 42 is a drawing of a duel purpose desiccant canister with the endenclosure removed to show the two canisters filled with honeycomb whichmay be formed in various shaped to serve as a knee bolster for the frontseat in the event the vehicle is in a crash.

FIG. 43 is a drawing of a shaped NOMEX honeycomb showing the air flowthrough the tubes (passages) created by the honeycomb structure with anair space to allow a turn in air flow direction.

FIG. 44 is a drawing of a rotary crossover input valve.

FIG. 45 is a drawing of a rotary crossover out flow valve.

FIG. 46 is a block diagram showing the air flow of a single cycle of therotary crossover valve.

FIG. 47 is a drawing of the rotary crossover valve with (8) eightconnections.

FIG. 48 is a schematic drawing of a multi canister desiccant system toprovide uninterrupted air flow, while the valves for two canisterschange over, the other two canisters continue to flow uninterrupted.

FIG. 49 is a schematic view of a duel canister, duel rotary crossovervalve cabin desiccant apparatus for a non-pressurized vehicle utilizingafter process cooler & air-conditioner coils to further condition theair going to the cabin which will humidify, dehumidify the cabin air anddefrost/defog the windshield.

FIG. 50 is a schematic view of a duel canister desiccant apparatus for anon-pressurized cabin showing a configuration utilizing duel crossovervalves to humidify, dehumidify the cabin and defog/defrost thewindshield.

FIG. 51 is a diagram showing the adsorption and regeneration processused in the humidification of recycled cabin air.

FIG. 52 is a diagram showing the adsorption and regeneration processused in the dehumidification of recycled cabin air.

FIG. 53 is a diagram of a land vehicle showing the adsorption of cabinmoisture into a desiccant material before the air is vented to theoutside, and the evaporation of moisture out of the hydrous desiccantmaterial through the use of an engine heater utilizing excess engineheat where the air is moved by an electrical fan.

FIG. 54 is a diagram of a land vehicle showing the reclamation ofmoisture out of stale cabin air and the additional supply of moisturefrom outside air to humidify the fresh heated air stream entering thecabin.

FIG. 55 is a diagram of a land vehicle showing the dehumidification ofcabin air to enhance the efficiency of the air-conditioner cooling,improve comfort, and increase the safety by defrosting the windshield.

FIG. 56 is a diagram of the air flow through a desiccant wheel toperform defog/defrost/dehumidification of recirculated cabin air.

FIG. 57 is a diagram of the air flow through a desiccant wheel toperform the humidification of fresh heated air going into the cabin.

FIG. 58 is a diagram of the air flow through a desiccant wheel toperform the humidification of recirculated heated air going into thecabin.

FIG. 59 is a diagram of the air flow through a desiccant wheel toperform the dehumidification of fresh outside air going into the cabin.

FIG. 60 is a process flow diagram of the multiple processes integratedinto a single apparatus utilizing a desiccant wheel capable of providingheat with increased humidity, defrost/defog function for the windshield,and dehumidified air to increased air-conditioner efficiency andcomfort.

FIG. 61 is a side view of a desiccant wheel vehiclehumidification/dehumidification/defog unit with a pre-cooler and cabinheating & cooling capability.

FIG. 62 is a side view of a desiccant wheel vehiclehumidification/dehumidification/defog unit with a pre-cooler and cabinheating & cooling capability with the additional feature of dehumidifiedheat.

FIG. 63 is a side view of a desiccant wheel vehiclehumidification/dehumidification unit showing the air-conditionercondenser as the heat source for evaporation.

FIG. 64 is a side view of a desiccant wheel vehiclehumidification/dehumidification unit showing the air-conditionercondenser as a second heat source for evaporation.

FIG. 65 is a side view of a desiccant wheel vehiclehumidification/dehumidification/defog unit.

FIG. 66 is a side view of a desiccant wheel vehiclehumidification/dehumidification/defog unit with a pre-cooler showing anadditional heat exchanger positioned below the desiccant wheel whichutilizes the fan without heating the air stream entering the wheel.

FIG. 67 is a side view of a desiccant wheel vehiclehumidification/dehumidification/defog unit with a pre-cooler and two PCXheat exchanger coils.

FIG. 68 is a side view of a desiccant wheel vehiclehumidification/dehumidification/defog unit with a pre-cooler, PCX coils,and a split set of coils to provide heat exchange for the pre-cooler andthe air-conditioner. Regeneration retention doors are shown whichisolate the desiccant after regeneration while the engine is off toprovide instant defog/defrost immediately after engine start up.

FIG. 69 is a side view of a desiccant wheel vehiclehumidification/dehumidification/defog unit with a pre-cooler, PCX coils,and a two separated sets of coils to provide heat exchange for thepre-cooler and the air-conditioner. Regeneration retention doors areshown which isolate the desiccant after regeneration while the engine isoff to provide instant defog/defrost immediately after engine start up.

FIG. 70 is a diagram of the air valves for a desiccant wheel vehiclehumidification/dehumidification/defog system which may be adapted to apreviously manufactured vehicle.

FIG. 71 is a diagram of the air valves for a desiccant wheel vehiclehumidification/dehumidification/defog system with the defog/defrost on.

FIG. 72 is a diagram of the air valves for a desiccant wheel vehiclehumidification/dehumidification/defog system with the cabindehumidification on.

FIG. 73 is a diagram of the air valves for a desiccant wheel vehiclehumidification/dehumidification/defog system with the cabindehumidification and windshield defrost on.

FIG. 74 is a diagram of the air valves for a desiccant wheel vehiclehumidification/dehumidification/defog system with dehumidification ofthe air supply for the air-conditioner to provide enhancedair-conditioner efficiency.

FIG. 75 is a diagram of the air valves for a desiccant wheel vehiclehumidification/dehumidification/defog system with warm humid air on.

FIG. 76 is a diagram of a duel desiccant canister humidification systemfor a land based vehicle.

FIG. 77 is a diagram of a duel desiccant canister humidification systemcapable of humidification, dehumidification, windshield defrost andenhanced air-conditioner efficiency with either fresh outside air orrecirculated cabin air going into the cabin.

FIG. 78 is a drawing of an engine exhaust heat exchanger.

FIG. 79 is a drawing of an excess engine heat recovery systems connectedto the desiccant canister environmental system.

FIG. 80A is a drawing of a desiccant coated NOMEX honeycomb center drivedesiccant wheel.

FIG. 80B is a drawing of a desiccant coated NOMEX honeycomb center drivedesiccant wheel showing the retained moisture content percentages as thewheel rotates.

FIG. 81 is a detail view of desiccant coated NOMEX honeycomb.

FIG. 82 is a detail view of super surface NOMEX honeycomb providingadditional surface area to enhance the adsorption and evaporationprocess for a desiccant apparatus and the additional structure providesimproved compression and lateral strength when the honeycomb is utilizedin this apparatus or other structural applications.

FIG. 83 is a detail view of the expansion process of super surface NOMEXhoneycomb showing the flat, partially expanded and the completelyexpanded structure where the corners of the internal structure have beenpre-folded.

FIG. 84 is a detail view of Poly-Shape NOMEX honeycomb providing bothadditional surface area and an area capable of receiving a fillermaterial to enhance the adsorption and evaporation process.

FIG. 85 is a detail view of Poly-Shape NOMEX honeycomb showing an areafilled with a desiccant material to enhance the adsorption andevaporation process or structural material to provide higher compressionstrength and higher rigidity to side loads by locking the honeycomb intothe expanded position.

FIG. 86 is a detail view and chart showing the increase in surface airof the Super Surface form over the traditional form of honeycomb with anincrease of 24% as compared to a smaller 50% size of the traditionalhoneycomb shape.

FIG. 87 is a detail view and chart showing the surface area oftraditional honeycomb used as a comparison to the Super Surfacehoneycomb.

FIG. 88 is a diagram of the sensor for the automatic control unit.

FIG. 89 is a diagram of the electrical output of the control unit to theother components.

FIG. 90 is a diagram showing some of the occupant's selections for theautomatic control unit.

FIG. 91 is a chart listing some of the elements of the automatic controlunit functions,

FIG. 92 is a two part chart showing an environmental profile utilized bythe automatic control unit for cabin temperature and fan speed based onoutside air temperature, relative humidity and duration of operation.

FIG. 93 is a two part chart showing an environmental profile utilized bythe automatic control unit for cabin air temperature, relative humidityand fan speed based on the outside air temperature, relative humidityand duration of operation.

FIG. 94 is a diagram showing sensors, control units, and devicesautomatically operated by the control unit.

FIG. 95 is a drawing showing one example of the front of the controlunit display.

FIG. 96A is a drawing of the full function automatic digital controlunit with modes and functions shown.

FIG. 96B is a drawing of the full function automatic digital controlunit with modes and functions shown and labels for explanation of thecontrols with the ACTUAL readings in the display.

FIG. 96C is a drawing of the full function automatic digital controlunit with modes and functions shown and labels for explanation of thecontrols with the SET readings in the display.

FIG. 96D is a drawing of the full function automatic digital controlunit with modes and functions shown and labels for explanation of thecontrols with the SET readings in the display with additional selectionfor the left and right side of the vehicle.

FIG. 97A is a schematic view of a duel canister cabin desiccantapparatus utilizing duel crossover valves.

FIG. 97B is a schematic view of a (4) four canister, duel rotarycrossover valve cabin desiccant apparatus capable of uninterrupted airflow.

FIG. 98 is a schematic view of a duel canister, duel rotary crossovervalve cabin desiccant apparatus utilizing after process cooler/heatercoils to further condition the air going to the cabin.

FIG. 99 is a schematic view of a (4) four canister, duel rotarycrossover valve cabin desiccant apparatus utilizing after processcooler/heater coils to further condition the air going to, the cabin.

FIG. 100 is a schematic view of a duel canister non-baffled straightthrough air flow, duel rotary crossover valve cabin desiccant apparatusutilizing after process cooler/heater coils to further condition the airgoing to the cabin.

FIG. 101 is a drawing showing a desiccant wheel freezer boxdehumidification apparatus with two motors.

FIG. 102 is a drawing showing a desiccant wheel freezer boxdehumidification apparatus with one drive motor.

FIG. 103 is a drawing showing a desiccant wheel freezer box desiccantbased dehumidification apparatus with two drive motors.

FIG. 104A is a diagram of a continuous flow (4) four canister casesection of a desiccant apparatus with straight through unbaffledcanisters.

FIG. 104B is a diagram of the position of the rotary valve moved forwardto show the relative location of the case.

FIG. 104C is a diagram of the rotary crossover valve with a Detail of asection of the valve.

FIG. 105 is a drawing of an example of a desiccant wheel “INPUT -to-OUTPUT” vent off set which compensates for wheel rotation and core cellopenings.

FIG. 106 is a drawing of a desiccant based dehumidification apparatuswhere an alternative to the inventive method utilizing a desiccant wheelto dehumidify an air stream which will then enter an air compressor tobecome dehumidified compressed air for use in general construction,commercial, and industrial applications or may be utilized in medical orprivate compressors.

FIG. 107 is a drawing of a desiccant based air compressordehumidification apparatus which is similar to the apparatus shown inFIG. 106, except that the heat exchanger is removed and the heat forevaporation is provided from the air stream which cools the compressorand air cooled motor.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT(S)

FIG. 1 shows the relative position of the inventive apparatus in amotorized vehicle designated generally by the reference letter “V”, butmore particularly in an automobile application where the engine isdesignated as 20, engine carburetor and air filter as 212, the radiatoras 19, and engine water (coolant) pump 18 which provides the heat systemto the apparatus' heat exchanger 17.

The apparatus is supplied with hot water when the engine water (coolant)valve 6 opens and the hot water flows through hoses to the heatexchanger 17. The system incorporates a desiccant wheel designatedgenerally by the numeral 21 (also shown as 11 & 12).

An alternate source of heat can be obtained by using the heat from theengine exhaust manifold and/or exhaust pipe (not shown). Thisalternative source provides quicker heat to the system, however specialcaution is required to prevent carbon monoxide from entering the cabin.Another alternate source of heat may be obtained by using bleed air fromthe compressor section of a turbine engine powered vehicle shown inFIGS. 11, 12, 13.

A hot chamber fan 5 pulls outside air through the hot section of theapparatus to regenerate the desiccant wheel 21. The outside air atatmospheric temperature is heated as it passes through the heatexchanger 17. As the hot air from the heat exchanger is delivered to thedesiccant wheel 21 contained in the case 40, and passes through aportion of the desiccant wheel 21, moisture is adsorbed by the desiccantmaterial (not readily seen in the drawings) applied to the wheel.

The system and apparatus are designed such that adsorbed moisture in thedesiccant of the desiccant wheel 21 evaporates into the hot air and isexpelled into the atmosphere. That is, after the air passes through thedesiccant wheel 21, it passes through the fan 5 and is expelled outside.Humid air in the cabin 42 is pulled out of the vent 24 and the cabinside fan 3. The operation of the cabin side fan 3 functions in thesystem by pushing this cabin air to the desiccant wheel 21 where thehumidity from the incoming cabin air is adsorbed into the desiccantmaterial of the wheel. After the humidity is removed, the now dry cabinair is pushed further through an air duct 46 connecting the cabin sideof the apparatus case 40 and directed through the windshield dash vent25 back into the cabin 42.

The system may also include an air baffle (valve) 80 to direct thedehumidified cabin air from the invention into the air-conditioningsystem return air to reduce/eliminate the build up of frost on thecooling coils in the air-conditioner and increase the efficiency. Thebaffle 80 includes conduit 81 connected to the air conditioner 82, andpreferably would only be activated to direct air to the air-conditioner82 after the system sensors and control system determined that the needto lower the humidity for windshield defog/defrosting had beenaccomplished, the air-conditioner was on, and the humidity level washigh enough to warrant the need for dehumidification.

With reference to FIGS. 2-4, the location of the apparatus is preferablyoffset from the center line (not shown) of the motorized vehicle V. Thedesiccant wheel 21 of the inventive apparatus can be divided withrespect to it's position of rotation in to two sections: (i) the cabinside of the desiccant wheel 11 and (ii) the hot section of the desiccantwheel 12. The seal 9 that separates the two sections is on both the topand bottom of the wheel, and attached to the case 40 of the apparatus.The seal 9 prevents the cabin air from mixing between the cabin airchambers 13 and 14, and the hot air chambers 15 and 16.

The torque motor 4 rotates the wheel 21 (cabin section 11 to hot section12) slowly within the case 40. The rotation of the wheel 21 moves thedesiccant applied to the wheel 21 from the cabin chamber 11, wheremoisture is accumulated (adsorbed), to the hot chamber 12, where themoisture is removed (evaporated) and expelled outside through an exhaustconduit located at the hot chamber fan 5. The moist cabin air passesthrough vent 24, then through an air conduit 44 from vent 24 to fan 3.Fan 3 forces the moist air into the lower portion of the cabin chamber14 and through the desiccant wheel 21 (the cabin side 11). The nowdehumidified cabin air moves out of the top of the cabin chamber 13through an air duct 46 to the dashboard vent 25. Vent 25 directs thedehumidified air toward the interior cabin side of the windshield 50(FIG. 1) to perform the defrost function. Vent 24 and sensor 1 arepreferably located under the dash near the occupants feet. The sensor 1can be of virtually any suitable variety such as a standard ⅛ or ¼ DINmanufactured by Thermologic Corporation of Waltham, Massachusetts. Anelectrical connection designated generally by the letter “E” isconnected to the sensor and used to transmit information electronichumidity control device box 2. The control may also be of any suitablevariety such as the PAC series manufactured by Thermologic Corporation.The humidity control box 2 is preferably located on the dash of themotorized vehicle (not shown) next to the convention heat andair-conditioning controls (not shown).

An alternative sensor system may include a second sensor for measuringthe windshield glass temperature. Such a temperature sensor may be ofany suitable variety such as a compact ⅛ DIN temperature sensormanufactured by Thermologic Corporation. This alternative glasstemperature sensor would provide more accurate dew point data for thehumidity control device. The humidity control device box 2 has anelectrical connection shown in FIG. 4 connecting it to sensor 1, cabinchamber fan 3, hot chamber fan 5, and torque motor 4. The humiditycontrol device box 2 has an electrical connection shown in FIG. 1connecting it to the coolant regulator valve 6.

The apparatus is shown offset to the engine 20 and the engine carburetor(injector) and. air filter 212. The engine water (coolant) pump 18provides the pressure to move the hot water (coolant) through theregulator valve 6 directing the flow to the apparatus' heat exchanger 17or directly to the radiator 19. The hot water (coolant) exits theapparatus heat exchanger 17 and moves to the radiator 19. In FIG. 2 thehot water passes through standard high temperature rubber radiator hoses54 to and from the heat exchanger 17.

FIG. 3 shows a side view of the system with the filters 22 & 23. Analternative position for filter 22 is shown in FIG. 8A with the filter22 located in front of the heat exchanger. The filters prevent dust anddirt from building up on the desiccant wheel 21. The cabin side of theapparatus, therefore, is made up of the dehumidified cabin air chamber13 which is connected to the defrost vent 25 by air vent duct 46, andthe cabin humid air chamber 14 which is connected to the system's cabinair intake vent 24 by air vent duct 44. The cabin side fan 3 forces theair through the half of the desiccant wheel 11 presently located in thecabin side chamber 13 and 14 (FIG. 4). The moisture is removed from theair as it passes through the small geometrically shaped holes 60 in thedesiccant wheel 21 (FIGS. 9A, 9B, and 10), as the air moves from thehumid chamber of the cabin side of the case 14 to the dry (dehumidified)side of the cabin chamber 13.

With reference to FIGS. 9 and 10, the desiccant material is preferably acoating or treatment applied to the surface of the wheel 21. The wheel21 is comprised of rolled corrugated cardboard, paper, NOMEX or similarmaterial with a plurality of pores or holes 60 corresponding to thecorrugations 62 of cardboard treated with an adhesive hardening agent toprovide strength and rigidity (with the consistency of cured fiberglass)for reliability and continuous operation in the changes of moisture andheat of the apparatus case 40. After the cabin air is dehumidified, itpasses through the upper cabin chamber 13 into the air duct 46 and thento the defrost/defog vent 25. The dry air passes over the surface of thewindshield glass to remove any condensation and continues to flow untilthe humidity level in the cabin can not support the formation ofcondensation on the surface of the interior glass. The occupants may usethe alternative humidity control device (not shown) to set the relativehumidity lower and in this case the system would continue to operateuntil the desired relative humidity is reached, then the automaticfunction of the control device would turn the system off The humiditycontrol device 2 continues to monitor and display the humidity levelwithin the cabin after it has deactivated the apparatus, and if itsenses the need to perform the dehumidification function it willautomatically reactivate the dehumidification system to lower it to thedesired level.

The arrows in FIG. 4 show the direction of air flow through theapparatus. Moist air is pulled from the cabin of the motorized vehicleand forced through the wheel 21 in the cabin chamber 13 and 14 of case40. With regard to the hot side of the apparatus, air is pulled into thesystem from hot air feed (not shown) or the atmosphere (inside theengine compartment) where it is drawn through the heat exchanger 17,then into the lower hot chamber 16, then through the slowly rotatingdesiccant wheel during which time the desiccant is recharged, then thehot moist air is pulled into the upper hot chamber 15, then the hotsection fan ejects the hot moist air back into the atmosphere.

In FIG. 8B and 4 the vertical line representing the center of rotationpassing through the torque motor 4, the reduction gear box 7, and thevertical drive shaft 66 which is connected to the reduction gear box 7,and transmits torque to the desiccant wheel 21 through the splinehexagonal shape of both the drive shaft 66 and the center hexagonalspline female receptacle 64 (hereafter female spline). In FIG. 9B thefemale spline 64 is shown permanently bonded to the center of the centerdrive desiccant wheel 21. The base of the female spline 64 fits into thelower wheel bearing 150. The weight of the desiccant wheel assembly 21rest on the lower wheel bearing 150. The lower wheel bearing 150 isfixed to the lower case 40. The design of the torque drive system andcase allows easy assembly for both production or repair.

The case 40 which may be manufactured from plastic, NYLON, fiberglass,metal or other suitable materials splits into two sections:

(i) the upper section (top cover) with fan 5, torque motor 4, reductiongear box 7, and drive shaft 66 attached (the torque motor 4, reductiongear box 5, and drive shaft 66 are assembled together before they areattached to the top cover of the case 40);

(i) the lower case (base) with cabin fan 3, heat exchanger 17, hotfilter 22, and lower wheel bearing 150 attached. To assemble the case,first the desiccant wheel assembly 21 is placed into the lower case, thelower female spline 64 fits into a center bore receptacle in the lowerwheel bearing 150 (the center bore receptacle provides alignment for thebottom of the wheel 21 with the lower case), then the upper case isplaced over the lower case, drive shaft 66 slides into the female spline64 of the wheel (drive shaft 64 is long enough to allow the alignment ofboth sets of splines before the case is lowered into the final positionof assembly)

In FIG. 4 the vertical line passing through the torque motor 4,reduction gear box 7, and the case 40 referred to as the center ofrotation for the wheel 21 also represents the division of the apparatusinto two sections: (i) cabin section 13 & 14, and (ii) hot section 15 &16.

In FIG. 5 (with arrows indicating air flow), (i) the cabin section 13 &14 has the cabin fan 3 forcing air from the motorized vehicle's cabin toform a positive pressure in the lower cabin chamber 14, the air flow isdirected toward the cabin side 11 of the desiccant wheel 21, a brushseal 9 attached to the lower case 40 prevents the air from crossing overto the hot section 16. In FIG. 8A the lower seal 9 is shown in anotherview dividing the case into two sections where the seal 9 starts from apoint outside of the edge of the lower bearing 150 running to the edgeof the case 40 and up the side wall to meet seal 10 in both directionsand forms a seal between the desiccant wheel 21 and the cabin chamber14. The seals 9 are attached to the top of a diagonal ridge in the lowercase which is raised to form one of the side of the lower cabin chamber14. The other side of the lower cabin chamber 14 is formed by half ofthe raised circumference wall of the case 40. The semicircular pocket ofthe lower cabin chamber provides for an even distribution of air to thecabin side of the desiccant wheel 11 as it rotates through the chamber.The top cabin chamber 13 is formed in a similar manner as the lowerchamber 14. The seals 9 for the top cabin chamber 13 are attached in asimilar manner as the lower chamber 14. The top cabin chamber 13collects the dehumidified cabin air and directs this air to the air duct46 which will contain the air flow to cabin vent 25. The seals 9 shownin FIG. 8B, Detail S1, consist of brushes that form a seal between theupper case and the desiccant wheel to prevent the crossover of air fromone section to another and allows the wheel 21 to rotate freely. Sealsshown in FIG. 8B, Detail S1 of the hot section are also used in thecabin chambers 13 & 14 in a similar configuration (not shown) in FIG. 5.

In FIG. 8B, (ii) the hot section consist of the following components:the air filter 22 is used to prevent dust and dirt from entering thesystem as the air enters from atmosphere, the air then enters the heatexchanger 17 where it is heated, the hot air is pulled into the lowerhot chamber 16 formed in a similar manner as the cabin camber 14, Thehot chambers 15 & 16 are sealed in a similar manner as the cabinchambers 13 & 14, FIG. 8B and Detail S1 & S2 show additional detail ofthe seals S1 & S2 used in both the cabin chambers and the hot chambersof the case 40 to prevent the crossover of air form one section toanother, seal type S2 is used in location 9 and 10, the lower hotchamber 16 contains the hot air and provides an even distribution of hotair into the bottom of the hot section 12 of the desiccant wheel 21, thehot air is pulled into the desiccant wheel 12 to regenerate thedesiccant material by evaporating off the moisture which was adsorbedduring its previous cycle through the cabin chamber of the apparatus,the moist hot air exits the wheel 11 into the upper hot chamber 15, thenthe hot fan 5 pulls the hot moist air out of hot chamber 15 and ejectsit out into the atmosphere.

The two sections are sealed to prevent air crossover and also to preventthe air from flowing around the sides of the desiccant wheel 21. Theseals consist of two types: the first type, seals 9 & 10, shown in FIGS.5, 8A, 8B and 8B, Detail S2, a web fabric 55 with a dense mass of shortbristles 56 extending away from the webbing to touch the surface of therotating desiccant wheel 21, with reference to FIG. 5 seal 10 of the S2type is used to prevent the air from bypassing the wheel; the secondtype of seal S1, shown in FIGS. 8A, 8B, and FIGS. 8B, Detail S1, has aseal element 200 with a raised annular fin 202, Seal S1 provides sealingengagement between the bottom of the wheel 21 and the case around theouter perimeter of the wheel 21.

In FIG. 8A, seal S1 is also used in the upper and lower case 40 aroundthe center of the wheel 21, to provide the seal around the bearing 150(lower) and drive shaft 66 (upper) and to complete the seal in the openarea between the left seals 9 and the right seal 9 for a complete airseparation of the hot and cabin sections of case 40.

With reference to FIGS. 11-12, the invention is shown in use with ahelicopter designated generally by the reference numeral 100 having aturbine engine 101 drawn in block diagram form on FIG. 12. Moist cabinair flow 102 is drawn from the interior of cabin 103 of helicopter 100.Dehumidified air 104 is reintroduced into the cabin. The system includesa desiccant wheel 106, a cabin air fan 107, compressor bleed air fromthe turbine engine 108 (to provide hot air to recharge the desiccantmaterial on the wheel 106), an automatic electronic control device (notshown), and hot moist air exhaust 110 ejected from the aircraft.

With reference to FIGS. 12-13, the cabin air fan 107 pulls moist airinto the system from the cabin, the air travels by air duct to the moistcabin chamber 124, the air is forced through the top half of thedesiccant wheel 106, as the air passes through the wheel moisture isadsorbed out of the air, the dry air is forced into the dry cabinchamber 120, the dry air travels through an air duct to the air vent 104where the dry air is directed toward the windshield to remove and/orprevent condensation from forming on the inside of the windshields 103.The apparatus uses excess hot air from the compressor section of theturbine engine 101. The bleed air from the compressor is released by theengine when the bleed band opens and allows the high temperaturecompressed air to escape. When the engine controls determines that thecompressor pressure is higher than desired, it opens the bleed band tohelp prevent compressor stall. The bleed air has been used in manyaircraft as a source of heat for cabin heating since the hot air isexcess and there is little chance of carbon monoxide gas entering thecompressor. The apparatus is similar to the automotive application witha few exceptions. Since the compressor is delivering high pressure hotair to the apparatus, there is no need for the invention to have a hotsection fan or heat exchanger. The hot bleed air recharges the desiccantmaterial on wheel 106 as the wheel rotates into the hot section 122 &126 by evaporating off the moisture adsorbed in the desiccant when thatportion of the wheel was in the cabin section 120 & 124. Torque motor130 rotates the wheel 106 slowly form the cabin chambers 124 & 120 toadsorb cabin moisture to the hot chambers 110 & 122 where the moistureis evaporated. The automatic electronic control device box and sensors(not shown) would operate in a similar way as the automotive applicationwith few exceptions. The control device would not need to operate a hotfan or hot water valve ( since they are not used in the aircraftapplication) but one of these outputs would control a valve to regulatethe flow of bleed air to the apparatus. The electronic control devicewould also provide electrical current through the electrical connection132 to the torque motor 130, and the cabin air fan 107 when theapparatus is activated to perform dehumidification. The system wouldcontinuously monitor the sensors to determine if the relative humidityhas reached a point where dehumidification in the cabin is necessary.The automatic electronic control device (not shown) would turn on andturn off the system automatically. In FIG. 11, the apparatus us shownforward and below the windshield, the alternative location for theapparatus would be between the cabin floor and the outer skin of theaircraft with an extended air duct 104 to deliver the dehumidified airto the windshield.

FIG. 14 is a summary chart of the various process of an alternative ofthe inventive apparatus which may be identified as a multi-functionapparatus listing sources of moisture, sources of heat, and a summarizedlist of the inventive methods for the desiccant based vehicleenvironmental control apparatus. The inventive methods utilizeddesiccants in conjunction with various air masses to adsorb moistureinto the desiccant material from one air stream and then evaporate themoisture out of the desiccant into another air stream. Forhumidification of the cabin air mass, the source of moisture may eitherbe stale cabin air from which the moisture is adsorbed before the staleair is allowed to escape from the cabin as fresh air outside airreplaces the stale air for the cabin, or outside air may be utilized asthe source of moisture adsorption into the desiccant for humidification.When the control unit determines that a duel air mass is necessary toprovide adequate moisture it will switch to the duel source air fromboth the stale cabin air and outside air. If the control unit throughthe sensors determines that one air mass has a higher relative humiditythe control unit will switch to the air flow of that air mass. Thehumidification of the air mass occurs when the hydrous desiccant is thenrepositioned into another air stream with a high temperature where themoisture is then evaporated out of the desiccant material into the airstream going to the cabin.

For dehumidification of the cabin air mass, the cabin air may berecirculated or fresh air may be utilized which passes through ananhydrous desiccant material resulting in the dehumidification of theair stream. After the moisture is adsorbed into the desiccant materialthe dehumidified air is directed into the cabin to lower the relativehumidity. Dehumidification occurs as a cool air mass passes through thedesiccant coated material where the moisture is adsorbed into thedesiccant. Humidification occurs when the moisture contained in thedesiccant is heated and evaporated into a hot air stream which is forcedinto the cabin. The sources of heat necessary for the evaporation of themoisture in the desiccant is supplied from various sources of excessheat supplied by the engine, heater, or air-conditioner. The excessengine heat is the heat source for most vehicle applications and thecompressor and condenser of the air-conditioner unit provide additionalsources of heat for vehicle or the heating system heat may also be usedto evaporate the moisture out of the desiccant. In turbine enginepowered vehicles the air from the compressor section of the engine is anadditional source of heat. Any available heat energy may be utilized toprovide the regeneration of the desiccant. In some applications the heatenergy maybe augmented with non-excess heat.

There are at least eight (8) inventive methods performed by the processand apparatus of this invention. They are listed in the lower section ofthe chart and numbered 1 through 8.

#1. Where fresh outside air enters the apparatus and the air is heatedbefore it passes over the desiccant material, the hot air then passesover the desiccant causing the moisture in the desiccant to evaporateinto the air stream, then the air stream enters the cabin as heated andhumidified air to warm the cabin and increase the relative humidity. Thesource of the moisture previously adsorbed into the desiccant materialmay have either come from expelled stale cabin air or an outside airstream that entered the apparatus from atmosphere and then returned toatmosphere after the moisture was adsorbed.

#2. Where recirculated cabin air is directed through the apparatus toboth heat and humidify the air before it returns to the cabin. The airis first heated by a heat exchanger then passed through the desiccant toevaporate the moisture previously adsorbed into the desiccant materialto increase the relative humidity of the air stream, then the hot humidair is passes into the cabin. In both #1. & #2. the temperature toeffectively perform the evaporation may produce an air stream with atemperature higher than that desired by the occupants, therefore,another heat exchanger coil is provided after the air passes through thedesiccant material to lower the temperature of the hot and humid airdown to the desired temperature.

#3. Where recirculated cabin air is dehumidified, as the cabin air isremoved from the cabin and passes through the apparatus the desiccantadsorbs the moisture out of the air stream before the air is returned tothe cabin to lower the relative humidity of the cabin air mass.

#4. Where fresh air is dehumidified before it enters the cabin, thefresh outside air passes through the apparatus where the desiccantmaterial adsorbs the moisture out of the air after which the air passesinto the cabin.

#5. Where recirculated cabin air is dehumidified before it enters theair-conditioner unit and passes over the cold evaporator coils, therecirculated cabin air enters the apparatus and is dehumidified as themoisture is adsorbed out of the air when it passes through the desiccantmaterial after which the dehumidified air increases the efficiency ofthe air-conditioner unit due to the reduction of cooling required tocool dry air rather than moist air when the air enters the coldevaporator coils of the air-conditioner.

#6. Where fresh outside air is dehumidified before it enters theair-conditioner unit and passes over the cold evaporator coils, thefresh outside air enters the apparatus and is dehumidified as themoisture is adsorbed out of the air when it passes through the desiccantmaterial after which the dehumidified outside fresh air increases theefficiency of the air-conditioner unit due to the reduction of coolingrequired to cool dry air rather than moist air when the air enters thecold evaporator coils of the air-conditioner.

#7. Where recirculated cabin air is dehumidified before it is directedtoward the cabin windshield to defog the inside surface of the glass,the recirculated cabin air enters the apparatus and is dehumidified asthe moisture is adsorbed out of the air stream when it passes throughthe desiccant material after which the dehumidified impinging air streamdefrost/defog the inside surface the windshield glass by evaporating thecondensation from the inside surface. The air may also pass through aheat exchanger after the moisture is removed by the desiccant toincrease the air temperature to provide a hot dehumidified air stream todefog/defrost both the inside and outside window glass.

#8. Where fresh outside air is dehumidified before it is directed towardthe cabin windshield to defrost/defog the inside surface of the glass,the fresh outside air enters the apparatus and is dehumidified as themoisture is adsorbed out of the air stream when it passes through thedesiccant material after which the dehumidified impinging air streamdefrost/defog the inside surface the windshield glass by evaporating thecondensation from the inside surface. The air may also pass through aheat exchanger after the moisture is removed by the desiccant toincrease the air temperature to provide a hot dehumidified air stream todefog/defrost both the inside and outside window glass.

FIG. 15 is a method flow chart showing how fresh outside air is heatedand humidified to increase the relative humidity of the cabin air. Items1. & 2. represent the two sources of moisture and “A” represents thedecision by the control unit to utilize the highest relativity air masseither 1. the cabin air exiting the vehicle or 2. outside fresh air usedto humidify 3. the desiccant material after the moisture is adsorbedinto the desiccant the resulting dehumidified air exits the vehicle 4.to the atmosphere. The cabin air mass 9. & 10. receives the addition of5. fresh outside air which is heated by 6. a heat exchanger or otherhealing device and humidified as this heated outside air passes throughthe apparatus where evaporation of the moisture contained in 7. thehydrous desiccant material raises the relative humidity of the airstream. The control unit determines if the air temperature is higherthan the desired temperature setting and makes the decision “B” todirect the air stream into a pre-cooler unit 8. or directs the air intothe cabin 9 at the higher temperature. The heater unit 6. heats the airto the necessary temperature to perform evaporation of the moisture inthe desiccant 7. after which the air may be further conditioned toregulate the temperature of the air going to the cabin 10. The heat 6.source for the evaporation process may be provided by excess engine heatand the pre-cooler coils 8. source of coolant is another set of coils(not shown) positioned in the air flow of the adsorbent side of theapparatus or between block 5. & 6. of the evaporation side of theapparatus before the air passes over the heat 6. unit. The arrowsbetween 3. the adsorption desiccant and 7. the evaporation desiccantrepresent the repositioning of the desiccant or the redirection of theair streams to cause the alternation of desiccant between each airstream as one portion of the desiccant material becomes saturated withmoisture and the other completes its evaporation regeneration cycle. Aslowly rotating desiccant wheel or alternating desiccant canister methodmay be used to perform the desiccant repositioning or airflowalternation.

FIG. 16 is a method flow chart showing how recirculated cabin air isheated and humidified to increase the relative humidity of the cabinair. Item 1. represents the outside air used to provide the source ofmoisture where 2. the desiccant material adsorbs the moisture from theoutside air stream after which the dehumidified air is returned to 3.the atmosphere leaving the moisture in 2. the desiccant material. Afterthe desiccant material 2. becomes saturated it is repositioned into theevaporation cycle represented by the arrows between 2. & 6. or the airstream, is altered to cause 4. the cabin air to evaporate the moistureout of 6. the desiccant material. The evaporation occurs when 4. thecabin air is 5. heated to a temperature high enough to evaporate themoisture out of 6. the desiccant after which the control unit (notshown) determines if the temperature of the humidified air exceeds thedesired temperature then “A” represents the decision by the control unitto either send the humid air stream directly to 8. the cabin or routethe humid air through 7. a pre-cooler unit to lower the temperature. Thesource of the heat for the process may be provided by excess heat fromthe vehicle engine (not shown). The source of coolant may be provided bya set of coils on the adsorption side of the apparatus (not shown) orbetween 4. the cabin air return vent and 5. the heater.

FIG. 17 is a method flow chart showing how recirculated cabin air isdehumidified to lower the relative humidity of the cabin air. Item 1.represents the cabin air entering the apparatus where it passes over 2.a desiccant material where the moisture is adsorbed out of the airstream before the air returns to 3. the cabin. After 2. the adsorptiondesiccant becomes saturated the arrows shown between 2. & 6. representthe alternating relocation of the sets of desiccant material where onearea of desiccant is 6. regenerated by evaporation and prepared for anew cycle, while 2. the other desiccant is performing the adsorption ofmoisture. Regeneration of the desiccant is accomplished when 4. outsideair is 5. heated and passes through 6. the evaporation section ofdesiccant after which the moisture exits the apparatus 7. along with thehot air stream. The heat 5. for the process is provides from excess heatgiven off by the engine (not shown) or other sources. After the airstream going toward the cabin has been dehumidified 3. furtherconditioning (not shown) may be necessary to increase or decrease thetemperature of the air.

FIG. 18 is a method flow chart showing how fresh outside air isdehumidified to lower the relative humidity of the fresh air going intothe cabin. Item 1. represents fresh out side air entering the apparatusand passing through 2. a desiccant material where the moisture in theair is adsorbed in to 2. the desiccant after which the dry air from theapparatus enters 3. the cabin to lower the relative humidity of thecabin. As 2. the desiccant becomes saturated it is either repositionedor the air flow is altered to place the saturated desiccant into theregeneration cycle represented by the arrows shown between 2. & 6. Whenthe desiccant is placed in the regeneration cycle the moistureevaporates out of the desiccant to prepare it for the next cycle. When4. the outside air passes through 5. the heater the temperature of theair stream is increased to a temperature necessary for evaporation ofthe moisture out of 6. the desiccant material. The hot air streamcontaining the evaporated moisture leaving 6. the desiccant materialexits the vehicle and returns to 7. the atmosphere. As one set ofdesiccant material is in the adsorption cycle the other set of desiccantis in the evaporation cycle by utilizing either a slowly rotatingdesiccant wheel or alternating desiccant canister method to provide therepositioning and in this way provides a continuous process flow.

FIG. 19 is a method flow chart showing how the relative humidity of thecabin recirculated air is lowered before the air goes through theair-conditioner evaporator cooling unit to increase the efficiency ofthe air-conditioner. The process is similar to that shown in FIG. 17.with the addition of 3. the air-conditioner cold evaporator coils. Wherethe dehumidified cabin air leaving the desiccant has a lower relativehumidity when it enters 3. the evaporator coils and the reduction ofmoisture decreases the energy required by the air-conditioner to coolthe cabin air. Less energy is required to cool a hot air mass with a lowrelative humidity than a hot air mass with a high relative humidity.

FIG. 20 is a method flow chart showing how the relative humidity offresh air going into the cabin is lowered before the air goes throughthe air-conditioner evaporator cooling unit to increase the efficiencyof the air-conditioner. The process is similar to that shown in FIG. 18with the addition of 3. the air-conditioner cold evaporator coils. Wherethe dehumidified fresh outside air leaving the desiccant has a lowerrelative humidity when it enters 3. the evaporator coils and thereduction of moisture decreases the energy required by theair-conditioner to cool the cabin air. The process is similar to theprocess described in FIG. 19 with the exception that fresh outside airis introduced into the cabin in place of the recirculated cabin air.

FIG. 21 is a method flow chart showing how recirculated cabin air isdehumidified and then used to defog/defrost the inside surface of thewindshield. Item 1. the cabin air is recirculated through the apparatuswhere the moisture is adsorbed out of the air stream by 2. the desiccantmaterial after which the control unit (not shown) “A” determines whereto direct the dehumidified air as it leaves the apparatus. Based onwindshield glass temperature and cabin temperature the control unit willdirect the air flow to 3. the heater coils of a heat exchanger, or to 4.the air-conditioner evaporator coils, or directly to 5. the windshieldvent where the impinging air stream will defog/defrost the insidesurface of the windshield glass. If the air is directed through 3. theheater coils or 4. the air-conditioner cooling coils it then flowsthrough to the windshield vent. These variations on the method allow fordefrosting of the inside windshield glass with recirculated cabin airthat is either heated, cooled, or room temperature. The desiccantmaterial 8. is regenerated with the same method described in FIG. 19.

FIG. 22 is a method flow chart showing how fresh outside air isdehumidified and then used to defog/defrost the inside surface of thewindshield. Item 1. the fresh outside air passes through the desiccantmaterial where the moisture is adsorbed out of the air stream by 2. thedesiccant material after which the control unit (not shown) “A”determines where to direct the dehumidified air as it leaves thedesiccant. Based on windshield glass temperature and cabin temperaturethe control unit will direct the air flow to 3. the heater coils, 4. theair-conditioner evaporator coils, or directly to 5. the windshield ventwhere the impinging air stream will defog/defrost the inside surface ofthe windshield glass. If the air is directed through 3. the heater coilsor 4. the air-conditioner cooling coils it then flows through to thewindshield vent. These variations on the method allow for defrosting ofthe inside windshield glass with fresh outside air that is eitherheated, cooled, or room temperature. The desiccant material 8. isregenerated with the same method described in FIG. 19.

FIG. 23 is a summary chart showing 5 of the general functions andbenefits of the inventive method.

FIG. 24 is a diagram showing the desiccant process of humidification ofa fresh air stream going into an aircraft cabin from the enginecompressor. The hot dry air from the engine compressor passes through ahydrous desiccant material causing the moisture in the desiccant toevaporate into the hot air stream after which the hot humid air entersthe aircraft cabin. Stale cabin air leaving the cabin first passesthrough a desiccant material where the moisture is adsorbed into thedesiccant before the air exits the aircraft. The repositioning of thedesiccant or the altering of the air stream provides for the alternationof the desiccant as one section becomes saturated with moisture and theother regenerates from evaporation. This drawing shows the reclamationof moisture given off by the passengers and the return of the moistureto the cabin as the stale air escapes from the cabin.

FIG. 25 is a diagram showing the source of moisture and the air flow forthe desiccant humidification of an aircraft cabin. The functions andmethod are similar to those shown in FIG. 24. with the addition of largearrows showing the reposition of the desiccant from one air stream toanother.

FIG. 26 is a drawing showing a desiccant based aircraft cabinhumidification system utilizing a slowly rotating desiccant wheel wherethe source of moisture is the outside air. The outside air passesthrough the desiccant wheel lower section where moisture is adsorbedinto the desiccant material. After the outside air passes through thewheel and the moisture is adsorbed into the desiccant the dry air isexpelled back out into the atmosphere. The hot bleed air from theturbine compressor passing through the other half of the desiccant wheelcauses the moisture in the desiccant material to evaporate into the airstream going to the cabin. The desiccant wheel method can continuouslysupply humidified hot air to the cabin over an indefinite period oftime.

FIG. 27 is a drawing showing a desiccant based aircraft cabinhumidification system utilizing a desiccant wheel where the source ofmoisture is the old cabin air before it is expelled. The method shown inFIG. 27. is similar to that shown in FIG. 26. except the source ofmoisture is the expelled stale air leaving the cabin. In this method thestale cabin air passes through half of the desiccant wheel where themoisture generated by the occupants is adsorbed into the desiccantmaterial before the air is expelled outside. With this method the bleedair from the engine may provide the air flow both for the air going intothe apparatus from the engine and out of the apparatus as the stalecabin air is allowed to escape when the cabin is pressurized.

FIG. 28 is a drawing showing a desiccant based aircraft cabinhumidification system utilizing a desiccant wheel where there is a duelsource of moisture. The method shown in FIG. 28. is similar to themethods shown in FIGS. 26. & 27. except that the source of moisture areboth the outside air and the stale cabin air. The control unit throughthe use of sensors would determine the desired direction of rotation ofthe desiccant wheel and then activate the torque drive motor to rotatethe wheel toward the source with the highest relative humidity. If thestale cabin air has a higher relative humidity then the wheel would passthrough the outside air stream first and then pass through the higherhumidity stale cabin air to add additional moisture into the desiccantwheel before it rotates into the hot air stream for evaporation from theengine compressor's hot air stream.

FIG. 29 is a drawing showing more details of the similar drawing FIG. 28with a desiccant based aircraft cabin humidification system utilizing adesiccant wheel with a duel source of moisture. Item 1 is the hot andhumid air going to the cabin from the apparatus to provide fresh heatedair with humidity for the cabin. Item 2 is the hot humid air passing outof the top half of the desiccant wheel. Item 3 is the top half of thedesiccant wheel with an arrow showing the direction of rotation when thestale cabin air has a higher relative humidity than the fresh outsideair used for adsorption. The direction of rotation of the wheel may bereversed to change the sequence of adsorption air sources. Item 4 is theair way directing the hot dry air from the compressor into the desiccantwheel. Item 5 is the hot air supply from the compressor section of theturbine engine. Item 6 is a seal used to separate the adsorption side ofthe apparatus from the evaporation side of the apparatus. Other seals(not shown) are utilized to separate the air flow and prevent bleed overof air from one section to another.

With the apparatus utilized in a pressurized cabin the small amount ofair leakage past the seals would be in the direction of the stale cabinair since this air mass has the lowest pressure. Item 7 is the axle ofthe center drive desiccant wheel. Item 8 is the air way used to ejectthe stale dry air after the desiccant removes the moisture byadsorption. Item 9 is the dry air exiting the apparatus into theatmosphere. Item 10 is the adsorption side of the desiccant wheel wheremoisture is adsorbed out of both the stale cabin air and/or fresh airwhere the moisture is later used for evaporation when the desiccantwheel rotates up into the hot air stream. Item 11 is the air waydirecting stale cabin air into the slowly rotating desiccant wheel. Item12 is the air way directing the outside air stream toward the desiccantwheel. Item 13 is the outside air supply Item 14 is the stale cabin airsupply.

FIG. 30 is a schematic showing a desiccant based aircraft cabinhumidification systems. Item 1 is the outside fresh air entering 2 theturbine engine compressor section where the air is heated as it iscompressed after which the hot compressed air is piped from the engineto the cabin where the hot dry air enters 4 the evaporation side of thedesiccant wheel and humidification of the air stream occurs as themoisture in the hydrous desiccant material evaporates into the airstream. Item 5 is the moist hot air passing through an air duct into thecabin. Before the air stream enters the cabin, the air may be furtherconditioned by either heating or cooling elements (not shown) toregulate the temperature of the cabin air mass. Item 6 is the stalecabin air vented out of the cabin to 7 the adsorption side of thedesiccant wheel. The stale cabin air contains moisture given off by theoccupants of the cabin and other sources; and this moisture is reclaimedby the adsorption of the desiccant wheel as it slowly rotates throughadsorption cycle where the moisture is extracted from the air stream bythe desiccant material. The moisture adsorbed into the desiccantmaterial coated on the wheel slowly rotates up into the evaporation sideof the apparatus where the moisture is released into 3 the hot airstream going into the cabin through the process of evaporation. Afterthe moisture is removed by 7 the desiccant wheel 8 the staledehumidified air exits the aircraft to 10 the outside atmosphere. Item11 the control unit regulates the air flow through the apparatus andstops or starts the humidification process by activating or deactivatingthe desiccant wheel torque drive motor (not shown). When the wheelrotation stops the humidification process also stops while the aircontinues to flow through the wheel unaffected. The control unit mayalso control the cabin temperature regulation.

FIG. 31 is a schematic showing a desiccant based aircraft cabinhumidification system utilizing a desiccant wheel including a coolingunit to lower the air temperature of both the fresh air after it ishumidified and also capable of lowering the temperature of the stalecabin air before the moisture is adsorbed from it into the desiccantwheel. Item 1 represents the turbine engine compressor section, Item 2is a vent pipe through which the hot compressed air passes from theengine to valve 16 which has three positions: the first position is todirect the hot dry compressed air directly into the cabin vent systemwithout adding moisture, the second position is to direct the air streaminto “E” the evaporation side of 3 the desiccant wheel, and the thirdposition of the valve is the closed position to stop the hot air flow tothe cabin completely. The hot compressed air stream passes from 16 theengine air valve through 2 the air vent pipes to 3 the desiccant wheel,where it enters “E” the evaporation side of 3 the desiccant wheel wherethe heat in the air stream causes the moisture in the hydrous desiccantwheel to evaporate out of the wheel and into the fresh air stream.

After the desiccant wheel releases the moisture into the hot fresh airstream from the engine compressor, the moist hot compressed air streamis directed by 4 the hot air valve to either 5 the cabin or to 6 thevent pipe to the “N” section of 7 the expansion unit cooler where theair temperature is lowered before the humid air stream enters the cabin.The control unit (not shown) regulates 4 the hot air valve when the ventline temperature sensors (not shown) and the cabin air temperaturesensors (not shown) indicate that there is a need to cool the hot humidair from the desiccant wheel before it enters the cabin. Item 8 is thevent pipe through which the cool humidified air enters the cabin. Item 9is the cool moist air entering the cabin. Item 10 is the stale cabin airentering the vent pipe going into the “O” side of 7 the expansion unitcooler where the stale moist cabin air is cooled before it enters 11 thevent pipe through which the air passes to the “A” adsorption side of 3the desiccant wheel where the moisture in the stale cabin air isadsorbed into the desiccant material coated on the desiccant wheel. Item12 is the stale dry air exiting the desiccant wheel and flowing througha vent pipe to 13 the expansion pressure regulator valve that allows thepressurized cabin air to rapidly expand to near outside atmosphericpressure an also maintains the cabin pressure at the correct pressurealtitude. This rapid expansion of the cabin air in 7 the expansionchamber provides the cooling effect for the air streams passing through7 the expansion unit. Item 14 the expansion unit temperature regulatorvalve controls the temperature of 7 the expansion unit by regulating theamount of expansion allowed in the expansion chamber as compared to theexpansion occurring as the air escapes to the outside atmosphere. Item15 is the dry stale cabin air exiting the aircraft. The automaticcontrol unit (not shown) regulates the action of the valves and torquemotor (not shown) of the desiccant wheel to maintain the desired cabintemperature, relative humidity and rate of air flow.

FIG. 32 is a schematic showing a desiccant based aircraft cabinhumidification system utilizing a desiccant wheel including a coolingunit to lower the air temperature of the fresh air after it ishumidified. FIG. 32 is similar to FIG. 31 except that the stale cabinair entering the desiccant wheel is not pre-cooled by the expansion unitin FIG. 32. Item 1 represents the turbine engine compressor providing 2the fresh hot compressed air for the cabin that passes through 2 a ventpipe to “E” the evaporation side of 3 the desiccant wheel where the hotair causes the moisture in the hydrous desiccant coated on the wheel toevaporate in to the hot air stream. The hot humid air then passesthrough a vent pipe to 4 the fresh air temperature regulator valve wherethe automatic control unit (not shown) directs the hot humid air toeither 5 the cabin or 6 the expansion unit cooler where the airtemperature is lowered before it enters the cabin 7 as a cool moist airstream. Item 8 is the stale moist cabin air entering the vent pipe goingto “A” the adsorption side of 3 the desiccant wheel where the moisturein the stale cabin air is adsorbed into the desiccant material coated onthe desiccant wheel. The dry stale cabin air exits the desiccant wheeland travels through a vent pipe to 9 the cabin pressure regulator valvethat maintains the correct pressure altitude for the cabin. Anembodiment to the design has this 9 valve controlling also direction ofthe air flow to 6 the expansion unit cooler or directly out toatmosphere. Item 10 is the stale dry exiting 6 the expansion unit coolerthrough a vent pipe to 12 the temperature regulator valve that regulatesthe expansion allowed in the expansion unit before the stale cabin 13exits the aircraft into the atmosphere. Item 11 is the dry stale airstream leaving 9 the cabin pressure regulator valve and bypassing 6 theexpansion unit going directly to 12 the temperature regulator valve. Theautomatic control unit (not shown) regulates the action of the valvesand torque motor (not shown) of the desiccant wheel to maintain thedesired cabin temperature, relative humidity and rate of air flow.

FIG. 33 is a diagram showing the adsorption of moisture by a desiccantcanister from old cabin air before the air is released into theatmosphere. The moisture given off by the occupants of the cabinevaporates in to the cabin air and passes through a canister containingNOMEX honeycomb as the stale cabin air escapes from the cabin of theaircraft. As the moist stale cabin air passes through the desiccantcoated material the moisture is adsorbed into the desiccant. The stalecabin air is allowed to exit the aircraft while the moisture remains inthe desiccant material.

FIG. 34 is a schematic drawing showing an embodiment of a duelalternating desiccant canister process where one canister is in theadsorption cycle while the other is in the evaporation cycle. In thisdrawing the two desiccant canisters are labeled DESC. #1. & DESC. #2.and each canister alternates through the process of adsorption andevaporation where one is in the adsorption cycle while the other is inthe evaporation cycle. The arrows show the adsorption air flow as theold “stale” cabin air enters the vent pipe to the desiccant canister #2where the old “stale” cabin air exits the canister through a vent pipeto a valve that when open allows the air to exit the aircraft. The otherair flow starting with the hot compressed air which causes the moisturein the desiccant evaporate and thus produces the desiccant regenerationprocess where the hot compressed air from the engine compressor entersthe desiccant canister #1 where it evaporated the moisture out of thedesiccant into the hot air stream. The hot moist air then enters thecabin and in this way increases the relative humidity of the cabin ascompared to the current method of allowing the moisture in the stalecabin air to exit the aircraft. The process reclaims the water vapor inthe air and provides a method of reintroduction of the moisture backinto the cabin. When the moisture contained in the hydrous desiccantmaterial in DESC. #1 canister completes the evaporation cycle an becomesanhydrous and the desiccant in the other canister DESC #2 becomessaturated by adsorbing moisture out of the stale air stream theautomatic control unit changes the valves to alter the air flow.

FIG. 35 is a schematic drawing showing a duel alternating desiccantcanister process where one canister is in the adsorption cycle while theother is in the evaporation cycle included in this drawing are the duelcrossover valves and the expansion air cooling unit. Item 1 representsthe hot compressed fresh air from the turbine engine compressor enteringthe vent pipe directing the hot air stream to 2 the entry crossovervalve which function is to switch the air flow from one desiccantcanister labeled “E” to the other canister labeled “D” and also switch 3the stale air flow to the opposite canister from the fresh hot airstream. The 2 entry crossover valve routes 1 the hot compressed freshair to canister “E” while the 3 stale cabin air is routed to the othercanister “D”. The compressed hot fresh air from the engine performs theregeneration of the hydrous desiccant by evaporating the moisturepreviously adsorbed into the desiccant during it's adsorption cycle,resulting in an increase in the relative humidity for the fresh hot airstream going into the cabin. Item 3 represents the stale cabin aircontaining moisture entering the vent pipe leading to the 2 entrycrossover valve that directs the moist air into the anhydrous desiccantcanister beginning the adsorption cycle. The separated air flows in boththe “D” & “E” canisters are toward 4 the exit crossover valve where 4the exit crossover valve directs the dry stale air stream to 7 the ventpipe leading to 8 the pressure regulator valve. The pressure regulatorvalve 8 controls the pressure altitude of the cabin air and directs theair stream into the expansion unit cooler where the expansion of the airdue to the reduction from the high cabin pressure to the low atmosphericpressure outside of the cabin resulting in a significant reduction intemperature. The air exits 9 the expansion unit cooler and passesthrough 10 the temperature regulator valve and exits the aircraft. Thelarger the opening in 10 the temperature regulator valve the moreexpansion takes place within the expansion unit and therefore causes ahigher rate cooling effect. When 10 the temperature regulator valveopening is smaller less expansion occurs in the expansion unit resultingin less cooling in 9 the expansion unit and more cooling occurs as theair exits the temperature regulator valve as the air escapes into theatmosphere.

After the compressed hot fresh air from the engine is humidified duringthe evaporation cycle in the desiccant canister the air is directed by 4the exit crossover valve toward 5 the fresh air temperature regulatorvalve where the air stream is either directed toward 6 the cabin or 11the vent pipe to the 9 the expansion unit cooler, where the fresh moisthot air is cooled to regulate the cabin temperature. The control unit(not shown) regulates the opening an closing all the valves, thisincludes the activation of the crossover valves to perform change overof the desiccant canisters from the adsorption cycle to the evaporationcycle. The control unit through the use of temperature, pressure, andrelative humidity sensors automatically controls the process byactivating the various valves to regulate the cabin pressure,temperature, and relative humidity. Although this drawing only shows twocanisters the apparatus may have several sets of canisters to level theair stream pressure so there is never a time when the air stream isrestricted.

FIG. 36 is a block diagram of an aircraft cabin desiccant process wherea single crossover valve is utilized. The single crossover rotary valveis utilized to alternate the air flow to and from a duel desiccantcanister system for the cabin humidification process. The valve consistof a cylinder within a cylinder with 8 (eight) to 16 (sixteen)connections to the valve to accommodate the inputs and out flows for the8 connection configuration and 16 for the system with a flow pressureleveling feature. The 8 connection valve has connections to (1) heatedfresh air from the engine compressor represented as hot/dry air, (2)stale cabin air represented as cool/moist air, (3) desiccant canister #1input, (4) desiccant canister #1 outflow, (5) desiccant canister #2input, (6) desiccant canister #2 outflow, (7) fresh moist air from theapparatus to the cabin, (8) stale dry cabin air exiting the aircraft.The 16 connection configuration has in addition to the 8 connectionslisted above an additional 8 connections to level the pressure duringcycle switching to eliminate the sound and air pressure change when itswitches from one desiccant canister to the other canister. The rotarycrossover valve has a torque drive motor (not shown) used to rotate thevalve.

FIG. 37 is a block diagram showing the airflow through the rotarycrossover valve. The rotary crossover valve is shown connected to thesame Items as listed in FIG. 122. In this diagram desiccant canisterlabeled CASE #1 is in the adsorption cycle and CASE #2 is in theevaporation cycle. When the automatic control unit determines that thedesiccant in CASE #1 is saturated with moisture and CASE #2 has beenregenerated from evaporation, the control unit exchanges the air flowinto and out of CASE #1 with that of CASE #2. The rotation of the innerchamber of the valve makes the exchange of air flow connections takeplace. The rotation of the valve is activated by the automatic controlunit and performed by the action of the rotary valve torque motor.

FIG. 38 is a cutaway drawing of a desiccant canister. The tube shape ofthe NOMEX honeycomb passage ways are oriented so that the air will flowthrough the desiccant coated honeycomb passing in the directionindicated by the arrows. Where the arrows indicate the air flow ismaking a 180° turn the honeycomb is cut on a 45° angle to allow the airstream to make the turn at the end of the canister. The canister can beformed in various shapes and sizes to accommodate the available space.They may be relative flat or in the shape of a box or non-symmetricshapes. Several separate canisters may be connected in tandem to male upa group operating together to perform a single cycle together orarranged to allow each set of canister to start or stop their cycleindependently. They may have a case made of plastic (NYLON), formedsheet metal, or other material that will support the NOMEX honeycomb andcontain the air flow. In some applications the canister must withstandan elevated temperature where metal or high temperature NYLON isnecessary.

FIG. 39 is a cutaway drawing of a desiccant canister showing how thecanister can be adapted to various shape requirements. The honeycomb canbe cut to fit into a curved case designed to fit into the space betweenthe rib and skin of an aircraft fuselage or other complex shaped areas.Although this drawing shows the air stream making several turns as itflows through the canister, some cases may not make a turn but simplypass straight through the canister.

FIG. 40 is a cutaway drawing top view of the air flow, baffles, andhoneycomb orientation in a desiccant canister. The honeycomb is orientedand cut to provide an air flow through the canister with the tube shapecells (passage ways) of the honeycomb lined up in the direction of thearrows indicating the direction of the air flow. Where the air flowchanges direction and makes the turn around the baffle the honeycomb iscut and a space is provided for the air to pass to the next section ofhoneycomb. The next section of honeycomb has a different direction oforientation for the tubes formed by the honeycomb that aligns with thedesired air flow direction. The number of internal baffles and airdirection changes may vary and the shape of the canister may vary to fitthe vehicle space requirement and desiccant performance requirements.The case may be made from sheet metal, injection molded plastic, blowmolded plastic or other materials.

FIG. 41A is a cutaway drawing of a desiccant canister that serves alsoas a crash force absorption panel in the event of an accident. The shapeand size of the canister may vary to meet the space availability, crashimpact absorption requirements, and desiccant performance requirements.The arrows labeled “A” represent the air flow into, through, and out ofthe canister. The honeycomb structure is oriented to allow the air topass through in a direction that offers the greatest compressionstrength from the honeycomb structure during a crash. The arrows labeled“C” represent the direction of the crash force expected during anaccident. The case may be made from sheet metal, injection moldedplastic, blow molded plastic or other materials. A metal or plastic airflow diffuser consisting of a flat sheet of rigid material with numeroushole openings is positioned between the entry air opening and thehoneycomb to aid in the even diffusion of air through the honeycomb(diffuser is not shown).

FIG. 41B is similar to FIG. 41A with the input and out flow openingsoffset to aid in diffusion of air flow through the honeycomb.

FIG. 42 is a drawing of a pair of desiccant canisters connected togetherwhich also serve as a knee bolster for the front seat of a vehicle tooffer crash impact protection to the passenger in the event of anaccident. Item “C” the insulation is shown partially removed. Item “A” &“B” represent a cut away view of the two canisters with the end capsremoved. The air stream would pass straight through from one end to theother. The end caps (not shown) would connect to air vents and airvalves to direct the alternating air streams for the adsorption andevaporation cycles. In this drawing the direction of the air passageways formed by the honeycomb would be aligned with the long direction ofthe canister. In the event of an accident the crash impact would be sothat the sides of the passage ways would be collapsed as opposed to theends of the cylinders taking the crash impact load.

FIG. 43 is a drawing of a shaped NOMX honeycomb inside of the canistershowing the air flow through the tubes passage ways) created by thehoneycomb structure. The air flow direction through the desiccant coatedNOMEX honeycomb is labeled “A”. The space between the two sections ofhoneycomb allows the air flow to make the turn and in this way thevarious baffles may be incorporated into the case to facilitateeffective air flow over the desiccant surface and enable the shape ofthe canister to vary to fit the space available.

FIG. 44 is an exploded view with the details parts shown separated toaid in explaining the function of a simple rotary crossover valve whichfunctions as a component of the apparatus for regulating the (input) airflow into the canisters. The valve operates by rotation action driven byeither electrical or pneumatic power (not shown) where it's function isto alternate the hot dry airflow and the stale “old” air containing themoisture from one desiccant canister to the other desiccant canister.Plate “B” rotates and plate “C” is fixed. The rotation direction arrowsrepresent the first rotation action with 45° of movement. When theadsorption and evaporation cycle is completed the plate rotates back tothe staring position. The valve continues to rotate in this back andforth action as long as the automatic controller determines that itneeds to perform the process. The vertical divider “A” represents theseparation of the hot dry air and the old “stale” cabin air. Thehorizontal divider aft of the fixed wheel “C” represents the separationof the air flowing to canister “case” #1 and canister “case” #2.

FIG. 45 is an exploded view with the details shown separated to aid inexplaining the function of a simple rotary crossover valve regulatingthe (output) air flow from the canisters of the apparatus. The functionis similar to that described in FIG. 130 and works in unison with theinput valve.

FIG. 46 is a block diagram showing the air flow of a single cycle of therotary crossover valve.

FIG. 47 is a drawing of the rotary complex crossover valve showing (4)four of the (8) eight connections for an eight connection valve and (1)one of the openings in the cylinder for the other (8) connections whichare not shown. The valve is in the position of supplying 3 hot/dry airthrough the end opening in the cylinder 5 through which the air passesinto the cylinder where the only other opening in the chamber is 10 thatallows the air to flow to desiccant canister #1. The 15 horizontal platein the cylinder along with a similar vertical plate Item 7 is thecontainment for the air flow through the cylinder limiting the airstreams 3 & 4 each to ¼ of the volume or the cylinder. In the valveposition shown the 4 moist air source (stale cabin air) enters 6 theopening in the cylinder through which the air passes to opening 12 inthe other end of the cylinder. The air then flows out through opening 12to the other desiccant canister #2. When the automatic control unitdetermines that the adsorption and evaporation cycle are complete itactivates the rotary power to rotate the valve cylinder 90° causing theair flow to each of the desiccant canisters to change from one desiccantcanister to the other desiccant canister. Item 13 is the input sideplate with an opening 5 at the top and opening 6 at the bottom and 14 isthe other cylinder end plate also with openings 10 & 12. Item 8 is aside opening in the cylinder wall which is part of the valve system forthe other (4) four connections to regulate the air flowing out of thecanisters. The second side wall opening (not shown) is opposite the Item8 opening. The rotary valves are a method of alternating the air flowinto and out of the desiccant canisters and may be substituted by othercomponents such as slide valves, gate valves or other inventive methodsto alternate the air flow.

FIG. 48 is a schematic drawing of a multi canister desiccant system.Desiccant canisters “A” & “B” are in the evaporation cycle where 19 hotfresh air passes through valves 2 & 4 to enter the desiccant canistersto evaporate the moisture out of the desiccant material coated on theNOMEX honeycomb. Item 20 is the hot moist air after the moisture hasevaporated into the air stream. The hot moist air exits the canistersthrough valves 9 & 11 to enter the cabin. The stale cabin air 18 exitsthe cabin through valves 5 & 7 and enters desiccant canisters “C” & “D”where the moisture is adsorbed into the desiccant coated NOMEX honeycombafter which the dry stale air 17 exits the canisters through valves 14 &16. The valves may be either slide opening valves, damper type, rotarycrossover or other remotely controlled valves that are activated by anautomatic control unit. The “A” cycle is shown in the drawing. When thecontrol unit alternates to the “B” cycle the valves change the air flowto cause the “A” & “B” desiccant canister to begin the adsorptionprocess by opening valves 1, 3, 10, and 12; and closing valves 2, 4, 9,and 11. The control unit also changes canisters “C” & “D” over to theevaporation process by opening valves 6, 8, 13, and 15; and closingvalves 5, 7, 14, and 16. Although this schematic drawing shows anaircraft cabin humidification apparatus, the multiple desiccant canistermethod can be used to dehumidify, defog/defrost, and increase theefficiency of the cabin air-conditioning.

FIG. 49 is a schematic view of a duel canister full function desiccantapparatus for preferably a non-pressurized aircraft cabin or surfacevehicle showing one alternative of the inventive method utilizing duelcrossover valves to humidify and/or dehumidify the cabin anddefog/defrost the windshield and/or increase the air-conditioner coolingefficiency. Item 1 is the air supply used to either provide the moisturefor humidification from which moisture is adsorbed into the desiccantmaterial or provides the hot air stream into which the moistureevaporates from the desiccant material during the dehumidification mode.The Item 1 air stream exits the apparatus into atmosphere after itperforms it's intended function. Item 1 may be stale cabin air when thecabin is receiving fresh air from atmosphere and the apparatus is in thecabin humidification mode with the stale cabin air having a higherrelative humidity than the outside air. Item 2 is either an outsidefresh air supply going to the cabin or recirculated cabin air supplywhich will go into the cabin to perform the necessary humidification ordehumidification of the cabin air; or defrost/defog the windshield glassby evaporating the condensation from the windshield and lowering therelative humidity of the impinging air stream on the inside of theglass. PRE-COOLER FUNCTION: Item 16 is a heat exchanger that works inconjunction with heat exchanger 3 or 24 to regulate the temperature of18 the air stream to the cabin as it passes through 16 the heatexchanger coils. Item 28 is the air-conditioner cold evaporator coil tocool 18 the air stream from the humidification process. Item 31 is theconditioned air going into the cabin. The automatic control unitregulates 31 the air stream entering the cabin from the apparatus tomaintain the cabin air mass levels with respect to relative humidity,temperature, and rate of air flow (CFM) by monitoring the sensorsconnected to the control unit (not shown) comparing these readings tothe desired results and then activating the components of the apparatusto obtain the desired results. The pre-cooler 16 changes the temperatureof the air going to the cabin when the coolant fluid is circulatedthrough the 16 pre-cooler heat exchanger and 3 or 24 the other heatexchanger which is heated or cooled by the flow of outside air acrossthe coils.

When the automatic control unit sensors indicate that the temperature ofthe air going to the cabin needs to be changed to increase or decreasethe cabin temperature to meet the desired cabin temperature, and thetemperature of the outside air is closer to the desired temperature than18 the air stream going to the cabin, the control unit activates thecoolant circulator pump 19, selects either Item 3 or 24 by activatingItem 25 the coolant fluid selector valve in the direction of the desiredheat exchanger and fan motor 9 to pull 1 air stream through theapparatus causing the air to passes through 3 the heat exchanger coilswhich changes the temperature of the coolant fluid after which thecoolant fluid circulates back to the pre-cooler coils 16 where 10 thecabin fan is activated to forces the air stream 18 through thepre-cooler coils 16 and results in a change of the temperature of airstream 31 going into the cabin. The coolant fluid circulated between thetwo heat exchanger coils 3 & 16 or 24 & 16 by pump 19 through supplylines 20 or 26. Item 3 or 24 heat exchanger coils cool or heat thecoolant fluid and the coils 16 increases or decreases the temperature ofthe air stream going to the cabin. When the automatic control unitsensors indicate that the temperature of the air stream passing over theheat exchanger coils 24 is closer to the desired cabin temperature thanthe temperature of the air passing over the coils of heat exchanger 3,the valve 25 changes the coolant flow from 20 the line to heat exchanger3 and redirects the flow of coolant to 26 the line to heater exchanger24. The check valves 30 in the return lines 21 and 27 are provided toprevent the coolant fluid from backing up in the lines. Item 29 is acoolant fluid reservoir with a filler cap and vent (not shown).DEHUMIDIFICATION/DEFOG MODE:

For dehumidification of the air going to the cabin to either reduce therelative humidity of the cabin air, increase the efficiency of theair-conditioner cooling unit, or defrost/defog the windshield, or anycombination of the functions listed above, 1 the air stream must beheated to a temperature necessary for evaporation of the moisturepreviously adsorbed into the desiccant by 4 heat exchanger which is ahigh temperature heat exchanger and is supplied with heat from excessengine heat. When the automatic control unit sensors detect the need tolower the cabin relative humidity, lower the relative humidity of theair going to the air-conditioner cooling unit to increase the efficiencyor defog/defrost the windshield the automatic control unit for theapparatus starts the dehumidification mode. During this mode the heatexchanger 4 raises the temperature of 1 the outside air to a level whichwill evaporate the moisture in the selected desiccant canister as thehot air stream passes over the surface of the desiccant and exits theapparatus to the atmosphere as hot humid air. The air flow of theoutside air stream 1 is pulled through the apparatus by the air fan 9.The air fan 9 pulls the air 1 through 3 the per-cooler heat exchanger,then through 4 the high temperature heat exchanger where the air streamis heated to a high enough temperature to evaporate the moisture out ofthe desiccant, then the air stream passes through 5 the entry crossovervalve, the air stream then alternately flows through one of the selecteddesiccant canisters 7 or 13 where the moisture previously adsorbed intothe desiccant coated on the NOMEX honeycomb 6 or 12 is evaporated intothe hot air stream to regenerate the desiccant and prepare the desiccantmaterial for the next adsorption cycle. The air flow continues out ofthe canister and passes through 15 the exit crossover valve. Thecrossover valves 5 & 15 may be a rotary, slide, damper or another typeof valve used to switch the air flow alternately between desiccantcanisters. Next the air flows through the heat exchanger 24 as it ispulled through the outside fan 9 after which it exit the apparatus as 17hot moist air. The other air stream is item 2 which is conditioned bythe adsorption of it's moisture by the desiccant while passing throughthe selected canister of the apparatus during cabin dehumidification andis pulled into the apparatus by the cabin side fan 10 which then forcesthe air through the apparatus and into the cabin. The air stream 2entering the apparatus may be either fresh outside air or recirculatedcabin air. For the cabin dehumidification mode the heater exchanger 11is not activated when the air passes through the heat exchanger to 5 theentry crossover valve. The air stream then enters one of the desiccantcanisters 7 or 13 where the desiccant material coated on the honeycombadsorbs the moisture out of the air going to the cabin. The dehumidifiedair exits the canister through the exit crossover valve 15 and flows tothe defog valve 22 which directs the air stream either to 23 thedefog/defrost vent for the windshield or to the cabin or to both thecabin and the defog vent 23. The air stream 18 from the crossover valveto air stream 31 going into the cabin first passes through 16 thepre-cooler where the air stream temperature may be increased or loweredand then through 28 the air-conditioner evaporator cooling coils whereadditional cooling may be performed. The air entering 28 theair-conditioner cooling coils from the desiccant canister has a reducedlevel of relative humidity resulting in a savings of cooling energysince less energy is required to cool dry air than is required to coolhigh humidity air of the same temperature. When the outside air is hotand humid, the air 31 exits the apparatus as cool dry air for occupantcomfort in the cabin. The automatic control unit (not shown) mayactivate cabin air cooling by either or both of the coils 16 & 28 whenthe sensors determine if cooling is necessary and what level of coolingmust be performed. The automatic control unit may activate the apparatusto only supply dehumidified air to the cabin to lower the cabin relativehumidity without cooling the air stream and/or the control unit maysupply dehumidified air to the windshield defrost vent 23 withoutcooling the air stream. The air stream 18 may also be heated by the heatexchanger 16. HUMIDIFICATION MODE: When cabin humidification isnecessary to raise the relative humidity of the cabin air for theoccupant's comfort the same sequence as described above is activated bythe automatic control unit with the exception that the heat to 4 thehigh temperature heat exchanger is turned off causing the air flowingthrough the apparatus to remain at a low temperature which will allowthe moisture from 1 the outside or stale cabin air flow to be adsorbedinto the desiccant material and valve 25 changes the coolant flow goingto heat exchanger 3 to heat exchanger 24. Item 2 the air going to thecabin will either have it's relative humidity increased or decreased asit passes through the apparatus before it enters the cabin. When theinventive apparatus is activated to reduce the cabin relative humidity,increase the air-conditioner efficiency, or defog/defrost the inside ofthe windshield glass the relative humidity of 2 the air stream going tothe cabin will pass through one of the desiccant canisters which waspreviously regenerated (had the moisture evaporated out of thedesiccant) causing the moisture in the air stream to be adsorbed intothe desiccant material. The cabin fan 10 forces the air through theapparatus and then into the cabin. The arrows in the desiccant canisters7 & 13 indicate the air flow through the NOMEX honeycomb 6 & 12 as itflows through the tubes (passage ways) formed by the honeycomb. The sizeand shape of the desiccant canisters may vary and the number of turnsthe air flow must make may also vary depending on the size, shape, anddesiccant performance requirements. After the air stream passes throughthe desiccant and the moisture is removed by the adsorption of thedesiccant the dry air with a low relative humidity then passes through15 the exit crossover valve (a rotary or other type of valve) toalternate the flow from the canisters to the cabin. When canister 7 isin adsorption, canister 13 is in evaporation. Item 22 the defrost airflow valve directs the air to either 16 the pre-cooler and 28 theair-conditioner cooling coil and then into the cabin or 23 the vent tothe windshield to defog the windshield or to both. The dehumidified airto defog the windshield glass may be heated before it is directed towardthe inside surface of the glass. Another alternative to the action ofthe crossover valves and process air flow may include a differentsequence of valve actions by the crossover valves where Item 1 theoutside air stream may provide fresh air to the cabin when Item 1 passesthrough Items 3 & 4 into 5 the crossover valve then pass through eithercanister 7 or 13 into 15 the exit crossover valve which directs the airflow into the cabin as 31 or 23. Item 2 the stale cabin air would passthrough the crossover valves so as to exit the apparatus 17 into theatmosphere.

FIG. 50 is a schematic view of a duel canister, duel rotary crossovervalve cabin desiccant apparatus utilizing the methods described in FIG.135 with the exception that 16 the pre-cooler unit has been removedalong with it's associated components.

FIG. 51 is a diagram showing the adsorption and regeneration processused in the humidification of recycled cabin air. Item 9 the diagramidentified as the adsorption process involves the process of extractingmoisture out of an outside air mass into the desiccant material. Thearrows represent 3 the air flow from atmosphere to the desiccantmaterial where the moisture (water vapor) in the air stream is adsorbedinto the desiccant, after which the air exits the apparatus 4 back intothe atmosphere leaving the moisture in the desiccant. As the adsorptionprocess is in operation, 10 the regeneration process is also inoperation. Item 7 the cabin air enters the apparatus as the arrowsindicate and flows toward 6 the heat exchanger where the temperature ofthe air stream is increased to a level sufficient to cause the hydrousdesiccant material to release the moisture into the air stream throughevaporation. After the desiccant material releases the moisture into theair stream, the air returns to the cabin 8 as recirculated air with anincreased relative humidity. By replacing the desiccant in theadsorption side 9 with the other desiccant material on the regenerativeside 10 after the adsorption and regeneration are complete the processescan begin another cycle of adsorption and regeneration. The alternatingreplacement of the two desiccant canisters may be accomplished not byphysically moving the canisters, but by the changing of the air streamsthrough the use of various fans, valves, and air vent lines. Thedesiccant canister method differs from the desiccant wheel method inthat the wheel method physically moves the desiccant from one locationto another to alternate the air streams, where the canister methodleaves the desiccant canister in a fixed location and the air streamsare moved from one canister to another through the use of air valves andvent lines.

FIG. 52 is a diagram showing the adsorption and regeneration processused in the dehumidification of recirculated cabin air. The cabin airflow is indicated by the arrows on 9 the adsorption side of the processwhere 3 the cabin air passes through the desiccant coated material andthe moisture in the air stream is adsorbed into the desiccant material,after which the air exits the desiccant material while the moistureremains in the desiccant. The air, Item 4, returns to the cabin with alower relative humidity. The section of the drawing showing 10 theregeneration process, takes in 7 outside air which passes into 6 theheat exchanger where the temperature of the air stream is increased to alevel necessary to cause the moisture in the hydrous desiccant toevaporate out of the desiccant material into the hot air stream. The hotair and the moisture exit the apparatus 8 to atmosphere thusregenerating the desiccant material. By replacing the desiccant in theadsorption side 9 with the other desiccant material on the regenerativeside 10 after the adsorption and regeneration are complete the processescan begin another cycle of adsorption and regeneration.

FIG. 53 is a diagram of a land vehicle showing the adsorption of cabinmoisture into a desiccant material before the air is vented to theoutside, and the evaporation of moisture out of the hydrous desiccantmaterial through the use of an engine heater utilizing excess engineheat where the air is moved by an electrical fan. The two desiccantcanisters are shown separated and not connected by vent lines or valvesonly for the purpose of explanation. The top desiccant canister is shownwith the stale air from the cabin passing through the desiccant canisterwhere the moisture in the air (H₂O) in the form of water vapor isadsorbed into the desiccant, after which the air exits the vehicleleaving the moisture in the desiccant. The lower portion of the vehicleis shown with the evaporation desiccant canister connected to the freshair from outside by the heater which is a heat exchanger using excessengine heat to raise the temperature of the air passing through thehydrous desiccant canister where the hot air causes the moisture in thedesiccant material to evaporate into the air stream as it is pulledthrough the desiccant canister by a fan that forces the fresh heatedmoist air into the cabin. In an actual vehicle the desiccant canistersmay be located next to each other and connected to various air streamsby air vent lines and valves which are not shown. This drawing onlyshows one function of the inventive apparatus which would have multiplefunctions in an actual vehicle controlled automatically by the automaticcontrol unit (not shown).

FIG. 54 is a diagram of a land based motorized vehicle environmentalcontrol apparatus showing the reclamation of cabin air moisture beforethe stale cabin air exits the cabin and the additional supply ofmoisture from an outside air supply to in crease the relative humidityof the cabin air. The relative humidity of the cabin of the vehicle isin the humidification mode to provide comfort to the occupants. Some ofthe inventive methods are shown with the adsorption of moisture into ananhydrous desiccant material before the stale cabin air stream is ventedto the outside, and heated fresh air is passing through a hydrousdesiccant material where the heat of the air stream causes the moistureto evaporate into the air stream resulting in an increase of the cabinair relative humidity. The inset diagram in the upper right showsanother source of moisture where a desiccant material is removing themoisture from an outside air stream. The canister adsorbing the outsideair moisture will serve as a source of moisture for the cabin when thecanister is in the regeneration cycle. The outside air stream passesthrough an anhydrous desiccant material where the moisture of the airstream is adsorbed into the desiccant material. After the moisture isadsorbed out of the air stream, the air returns to atmosphere. When thedesiccant material becomes saturated with moisture the air streams arealtered so as to replace the saturated desiccant with another desiccantcanister which is anhydrous from a previous regeneration cycle. Thelower desiccant canister is shown in the process of regeneration withthe heated air stream passing through the canister causing the moistureto evaporate. The air streams may continue to provide the sameenvironmental conditioning over an extended period of time due to thealternation of the flow between different canisters. The fans, filters,air valves and control unit are not shown. The actual size, shape, andposition of the desiccant canisters may also be configured to providecrash protection for the occupants in the event of an accident.

FIG. 55 is a diagram of a land vehicle showing the dehumidification ofair to enhance the efficiency of the air-conditioner cooling, improvecomfort, and increase the safety by defrosting the windshield. The watervapor (H₂O) given off by the occupants of the vehicle can be removed bythe inventive methods shown in this diagram. The top desiccant canisteris in the adsorption cycle where the anhydrous desiccant material isadsorbing the moisture out of the cabin air stream after which the airreturns to the cabin with a lower relative humidity. The lower relativehumidity can have several benefits. The first benefit is the regulationof relative humidity for the comfort of the occupants of the vehicle,where conventional vehicles only control the cabin air temperature, thisapparatus can keep the temperature and relative humidity in the comfortzone of 30 to 60% relative humidity or regulate the relative humidity togiven level. The second benefit is the efficiency and performanceimprovement resulting from the reduction in demand on the cabinair-conditioning cooling required due to the reduction in humidity. Theair-conditioner will have less moisture to condense out of the cabin airon a hot and humid day. The vehicle can provide comfort to the occupantswith a smaller air-conditioning unit and the air-conditioner coolingunit will be used less often since the occupants will feel comfortableat a higher temperature when the relative humidity is lower. The thirdbenefit is the improvement in safety for the occupants since theapparatus has the capability to automatically eliminate and prevent theformation of condensation on the inside of the windshield glass of thevehicle. The lower relative humidity air is directed toward thewindshield to defog or defrost the windshield. As the desiccant in thetop canister becomes saturated with moisture, the lower canister iscompleting it's regeneration cycle and the air streams into and out ofboth canisters are alternated so as change the airflow from one canisterto the other canister.

FIG. 56 is a diagram of the air flow similar to the flow chart shown inFIG. 17 when the defog/defrost/dehumidification process is operatingwhere outside air (from the atmosphere) 1 enters the heat exchanger 4 toraise the temperature of the air providing the necessary latent heat ofevaporation for the previously adsorbed moisture in the desiccant, theexcess heat from the engine of the motorized vehicle is obtained fromeither the engine coolant system or the exhaust system that may besimilar to the type shown in FIGS. 78 & 79. NOTE: precaution must begiven to the danger of carbon monoxide mixing with the cabinenvironmental system. As Item 2 the hot air passes through the lowerhalf of the desiccant wheel 5 the evaporation of the moisture in thedesiccant material of 5 the wheel occurs, the hot humid air stream 3exits the motorized vehicle, the desiccant wheel 5 slowly rotates theanhydrous desiccant which is regenerated in the lower section of thewheel to a position at the top area of the wheel, The anhydrous sectionof the wheel rotates up into the humid air stream 7 from the cabin 6 andas the humid air from the cabin passes through the anhydrous side of thedesiccant wheel 5 the moisture is adsorbed out of the cool moist cabinair into the desiccant material on the wheel, the dry air 8 exits thewheel and returns to the cabin 6 to lower the relative humidity of thecabin air mass. The process and apparatus are controlled by theautomatic control unit 9 which monitors the temperature and relativehumidity sensors; and activates the various components of the apparatusto regulate the cabin environmental.

FIG. 57 is a diagram of the air flow through a desiccant wheel toperform the humidification of fresh heated air going into the cabin,which is similar to the flow chart shown in FIG. 17. Item 1 the freshoutside air is heated by a heat exchanger 2 utilizing excess engine heatto raise the temperature of the outside air stream to the levelnecessary to cause the moisture in the desiccant material to evaporate.Item 5 the hot air exits the heater and passes through 4 the evaporationside of the desiccant wheel where the moisture in the hydrous desiccantmaterial evaporates into the air stream, which then exits the desiccantwheel 5 as hot humid air and enters the cabin to provide heat withhumidity. The automatic control unit 11 regulates the temperature andrelative humidity of the cabin by activating the fans, motors, andvalves to provide a comfortable environment for the occupants. Item 9represents a plane which separates the air flow to the adsorption sideof the wheel from the evaporation side of the desiccant wheel. Where thestructure of the apparatus which represents plane 9 intersects the wheelthere are seals provided (which are not shown) to prevents the air flowfrom one air stream from mixing with the other air stream. The outsideair 6 enters the desiccant wheel 7 on the adsorption side where themoisture from the outside air stream is adsorbed into the desiccantmaterial coated on the wheel. After the moisture is adsorbed out of 8the air stream exits the vehicle 10 back into the atmosphere. Themoisture which is adsorbed into the adsorption side of the desiccantwheel causing the desiccant to become hydrous after which the hydrousdesiccant rotates up into 4 the evaporation position where the moistureevaporates. When the sensors for the automatic control unit detect thatthe humidity has reached the desired level and humidification is nolonger necessary the air fans may continue to operate to provide heatwhile the control unit turns off the desiccant wheel torque motor (notshown) and the wheel rotation stops, thus the humidification stops.

FIG. 58 is a diagram of the air flow through a desiccant wheel toperform the humidification of recirculated heated air going into thecabin. The process of humidification in this diagram is similar to thatof FIG. 16, where 1 recirculating air from the cabin enters 2 the heatexchanger utilizing various sources of excess engine heat to increasethe air temperature up to the level necessary to evaporate the out of 4the hydrous desiccant coated on the surface of the slowly rotatingwheel, after which 5 the air stream containing the increased level ofrelative humidity returns to the cabin to raise the relative humidity ofthe air mass contained in the cabin. Item 9 represents a plane whichseparates the air flow to the adsorption side of the wheel from theevaporation side of the desiccant wheel. Where the structure of theapparatus which represents plane 9 intersects the wheel there are sealsprovided (which are not shown) to prevents the air flow from one airstream from mixing with the other air stream. The outside air 6containing moisture from the atmosphere passes through the adsorptionside of the desiccant wheel where the moisture is adsorbed into thedesiccant material. The slow rotation of the wheel causes the anhydrousdesiccant section of the wheel to rotate into the moist air stream wherethe desiccant is converted into hydrous desiccant. Item 8 the dry airstream exits the vehicle and returns to the atmosphere. The process willcontinue to extract moisture out of the atmosphere and release themoisture into the cabin as long as 11 the automatic control unitprovides electrical power the wheel rotation torque motor (not shown).When the automatic control unit stops the rotation of the desiccantwheel, the humidification also stops. The automatic control unitregulates the cabin environmental conditions including the relativehumidity to provide comfort to the occupants of the vehicle.

FIG. 59 is a diagram of the air flow through a desiccant wheel toperform the dehumidification of fresh outside air going into the cabin.The process shown in this drawing is similar to the process flow chartin FIG. 18, where Item 1 fresh outside air enters the apparatus to passthrough a vent system 3 where it enters the adsorption side 4 of ananhydrous desiccant wheel which adsorbs the moisture out of the airstream. The dehumidified air exits the wheel 5 and passes into the cabinto lower the relative humidity of the cabin air mass, or may be directedto the air-conditioner cooling coils to increase the air-conditionerefficiency, or directed to the windshield where the impinging air flowwould remove or prevent the formation of fog/frost on the inside surfaceof the windshield glass. The dehumidified air stream 5 may also receiveother conditioning to regulate the air temperature before it enters thecabin. Item 9 represents a plane which separates the air flow to theadsorption side of the wheel from the evaporation side of the desiccantwheel. Where the structure of the apparatus which represents plane 9intersects the wheel there are seals provided (which are not shown) toprevents the air flow from one air stream from mixing with the other airstream. The evaporation side of the desiccant which converts thedesiccant material on the wheel from hydrous to anhydrous desiccantutilizes fresh outside air which enters the heater 12 and raises the airtemperature to the level necessary to perform the regeneration of thedesiccant material. Item 12 the engine heater utilizes excess engineheat to produce 6 the hot air stream entering 7 the adsorption side ofthe desiccant wheel to perform the evaporation, and after which exitsthe wheel 8 as hot humid air taking with the air stream the moisturepreviously contained in the desiccant wheel. Item 8 the hot humid airexits the vehicle and returns to the atmosphere 10 . The automaticcontrol unit 11 regulates the apparatus by monitoring the temperatureand relative humidity sensors and activating or deactivating thecomponents of the apparatus. The automatic control unit may continue topower the air flow through the apparatus, but discontinue thedehumidification by deactivating the desiccant wheel torque motor (notshown) causing the wheel rotation to stop thus the dehumidification willstop while the air stream continues to flow. The automatic control unitmay also regulate the temperature of 5 the air stream entering thecabin.

FIG. 60 is a diagram of a desiccant based wheel process capable ofproviding heat with increased humidity, defrost/defog function for thewindshield, regulation of the cabin relative humidity level andincreased air-conditioner efficiency. The diagram is divided by a set ofparallel lines passing through the center of the desiccant wheel whichrepresent a separation of the air streams passing through the wheel withthe process heat exchanger located in the upper section of the diagram.The heat exchanger may receive excess heat from the engine or othersources to raise the temperature of the selected air stream which willpass through the desiccant wheel to cause the moisture in the desiccantto evaporate into the air stream. The desiccant wheel is divided intotwo sections; the first section at the top of the wheel labeled “H”contains the moisture which will be released into the hot air stream. Asthe wheel slowly rotates into “H” position the portion of the wheelcontaining hydrous desiccant moves into the upper air stream and themoisture begins to evaporate out of the desiccant material as thedesiccant passes through the hot air stream for the purpose ofcompleting the moisture evaporation as the wheel completes it's cyclethrough the “H” position resulting in the conversion of the desiccantinto an anhydrous condition which prepares the desiccant for the next“D” cycle during which time the desiccant on the wheel will adsorbmoisture. The desiccant coated on the wheel enters the “D” position asanhydrous and after the desiccant on the wheel completes it's rotationthrough the “D” position where the adsorption occurs as a moist airstream passes through the desiccant resulting in the conversion tohydrous before it rotates back into the “H” position.

The automatic control unit through the monitoring of temperature andrelative humidity sensors determines which valves, fans, or motors (notshown) to activate to obtain the desired results. The automatic controlunit selectively activates the components of the apparatus or theoccupants may set the control unit to a desired setting such as theselection of fresh outside air or recirculated cabin air. The occupantwould select the cabin air source identified as (1) outside air or (2)cabin air and the automatic control unit would activate the componentsof the apparatus to deliver a desirable temperature, humidity, airsource, and air flow volume/rate (CFM). Items 3 & 4 represent the outputof hot humid air which may be utilized to heat and humidify the cabin orthe hot humid air may be expelled into the atmosphere. The automaticcontrol unit would automatically activate the necessary apparatuscomponents to cause the hot humid air stream to go to either the cabinor be expelled into the atmosphere. Items 5 & 6 represent the airsources for the air stream entering the lower section of the diagram,where 5 the recycled cabin air enters the anhydrous desiccant wheelwhich adsorbs the moisture out of the air stream after which the airreturns to the cabin to either defog/defrost the inside windshield glassor lower the relative humidity of the cabin. The dehumidified air streammay also go to the air-conditioning cooler coils to increase theefficiency of the air-conditioner and enable the designer to install asmaller size unit in the vehicle since the air-conditioner unit willonly have to lower the temperature of dry hot air, not lower thetemperature of hot and humid air on a hot and humid day. Theseimprovements from lower relative humidity could represent 20 to 30%reduction in energy consumption for the air-conditioner. If the controlunit selects 5 the cabin air source for dehumidification on the “D” sideof the wheel, the control unit would not select 2 cabin air for the “H”side of the wheel. When 5 or 6 enters the desiccant wheel thedehumidified air stream exiting the desiccant wheel may be directed outof the vehicle and into the atmosphere as indicated with Item 9.

FIG. 61 is a side view drawing of a desiccant wheel vehiclehumidification/dehumidification/defog apparatus with a pre-cooler andone heat element. The apparatus is capable of performing multiplefunctions.

The function of humidification: When the sensors of the automaticcontrol unit detects that the cabin environmental system needs to supplyhumidified heated air to the cabin the automatic control unit activatesthe following items: 1 Cabin side fan which forces 9 either cabin air oroutside air through the apparatus where the air is heated and humidifiedbefore it enters the cabin as warm or hot humid air. When the occupantof the vehicle selects fresh air or recirculated air the automaticcontrol unit activates an air valve or air damped gate (not shown ) todirect the desired air stream into the cabin. The air stream forced by 1the cabin side fan first passes through the heater element 3, whichheats the air before it continues through the desiccant wheel 4 wherethe heat of the air stream evaporates the moisture out of the hydrousdesiccant material of the desiccant wheel . In the portion of thedesiccant wheel 4, which is located in the (B) position of the case, iswhere the desiccant material releases it's moisture into the hot airstream. If the temperature of the air stream is higher than desired forthe cabin then 14 the pre-cooler is activated by the automatic controlunit which supplies power to a circulator pump causing a coolant fluidto circulate between 14 the pre-cooler (heat exchanger) and 10 anotherheat exchanger connected by tubes or hosed to circulate the coolantbetween the two heat exchangers. The automatic control unit regulatesthe flow of coolant between the heat exchangers to regulate the airtemperature, The air-conditioner cooling evaporator coils 7 are notactivated during this process. The air stream 12 enters the cabin aswarm or hot humid air to provide comfortable healthful heated air withmoisture for the occupants of the vehicle. The supply of moisture isprovided by the other side of the apparatus. The automatic control unitsensors measure the relative humidity of both the outside air and thecabin air, and if the occupant has selected fresh cabin air for thecabin then the automatic control unit will select as a source ofmoisture either outside or cabin air with it's preference toward the airwith the higher relative humidity, however, if the cabin air is set torecirculate then the automatic control unit will select outside air as10 the source of moisture for the “A” portion of the desiccant wheel.The air stream 10 is the source of moisture for the process. Air stream10 is pulled through the apparatus by 8 the outside fan and passesthrough 15 the heat exchanger for the pre-cooler. The air streamcontinues through 13 another heat exchange which is not activated forthis process. The air stream then enters “A” the adsorption side of thedesiccant wheel where the moisture in air stream 10 is adsorbed into theanhydrous dessicant material. After the moisture is adsorbed out of theoutside air 10, the dry air 11 is ejected form the apparatus by theoutside air fan 8 into the atmosphere.

As the torque motor 6 slowly rotates the desiccant wheel 4 out of the“A” position where the moisture is adsorbed into the desiccant into the(B) position in the case the moisture in the desiccant wheel isevaporated out of the desiccant into the hot air stream passing throughthe “B” position of the wheel. The heater elements 3 provide the heat toraise the air temperature providing the hot air necessary to perform theregeneration (evaporation of moisture out of the desiccant) of thedesiccant coating on the wheel. In summary, the (A) side of thedesiccant wheel 4 accumulates moisture, then as the wheel slowly rotatesinto the (B) position the desiccant on the wheel releases the moistureinto the hot air stream 12. The outside air fan 8 pulls outside airthrough the apparatus and then expels the air back outside.

During the humidification cycle the following items are not activated:14 & 15 the pre-cooler coils, 7 evaporator, or 13 heat exchanger,. Undernormal environmental conditions the need to humidify and cool the cabinair seldom occurs. Although the system normally only needs to providehumidification while the heater for the cabin is operating, a differentvariation of the inventive apparatus can be modified to performhumidification and cooling, however, such an alternative would beinefficient and is not shown in this drawing.

The function of dehumidification: The inventive apparatus is capable ofsupplying dehumidified air to the cabin which has had the moistureremoved from the air stream as it passes through the “B” side of thedesiccant wheel. The air source 9 entering the cabin side of theapparatus may be outside air or recirculated cabin air which is pushedthrough the apparatus by 1 the cabin side fan and passes through heatelement 3 which is deactivated during this process. The air stream thenpasses through the “B” portion of the slowly rotating desiccant wheel,where the anhydrous desiccant material adsorbs the moisture out of theair stream. The dehumidified air stream then enters the pre-cooler 14which may be activated by the automatic control unit when the air stream10 passing through 15 the heat exchanger has a temperature closer to thedesired cabin temperature than that of the dehumidified air streamexiting the “B” portion of the desiccant wheel. When the pre-cooler isactivated by the automatic control unit power is supplied to acirculator pump (not shown) which starts to move a coolant fluid between14 the pre-cooler (heat exchanger) and 15 the other heat exchangerconnected by tubes or hosed (not shown) to circulate the coolant betweenthe two heat exchangers. The dehumidified air stream next passes throughthe air-conditioning evaporator cooling coils which may be activated bythe automatic control unit to lower the temperature of the dehumidifiedair stream going to the cabin. The dehumidified cool/cold air stream 12is directed by the automatic control unit either to the inside of thewindshield glass to prevent fog or frost on the windshield or isdirected into the cabin or the automatic control unit may direct the airstream to both the cabin and the windshield. As the hydrous desiccantmaterial from the “B” position of the desiccant wheel slowly rotatesinto the “A” position to have the moisture removed form the desiccant,the air stream 10 is utilized to evaporate the moisture out of thedesiccant material when the air stream 10 may be heated by the heatexchanger 15, when it is activated, and heat exchanger 13 which mayutilize excess engine heat to raise the temperature of the air stream tothe level necessary to cause the moisture in the desiccant material inthe “A” position to evaporate into 11 the hot air stream as it is pulledout of the apparatus by the outside air fan 8 which ejects the hot humidair into the atmosphere. When the automatic control unit sensorsindicate that the relative humidity has been lowered to an acceptablerelative humidity level the control unit turns off the power to 6 thedesiccant wheel rotation torque motor which will discontinue thedehumidification process and may allow the apparatus to continue operateother components of the apparatus to regulate the cabin temperaturewithout changing the level of the relative humidity.

FIG. 62 is a side view of a desiccant wheel vehiclehumidification/dehumidification/defog unit with a pre-cooler and twoheat element. In this alternative of the inventive apparatus the drawingshows the operation of a motorized vehicle'shumidification/dehumidification/defog functions which are enhanced witha pre-cooler. The apparatus is capable of performing multiple functions.

The function of humidification: When the sensors of the automaticcontrol unit detects that the cabin environmental system needs to supplyhumidified heated air to the cabin the automatic control unit activatesthe following items: 1 Cabin side fan which forces 9 either cabin air oroutside air through the apparatus where the air is heated and humidifiedbefore it enters the cabin as warm or hot humid air. When the occupantof the vehicle selects fresh air or recirculated air the automaticcontrol unit activates an air valve or air damped gate (not shown) todirect the desired air stream into the cabin. The air stream forced by 1the cabin side fan first passes through the heater element 3, whichheats the air before it continues through the desiccant wheel 4 wherethe heat of the air stream evaporates the moisture out of the hydrousdesiccant material of the desiccant wheel . When the portion of thedesiccant wheel 4, is located in the (I) position of the case, thedesiccant material releases it's moisture into the hot air stream from 3the heat element which may be a heat exchanger. If the temperature ofthe air stream is higher than desired for the cabin then 14 thepre-cooler is activated by the automatic control unit when power issupplied to a circulator pump (not shown) which starts to circulate acoolant fluid between 14 the pre-cooler (heat exchanger) and 15 theother heat exchanger connected by tubes or hosed to circulate thecoolant between the two heat exchangers. The air-conditioner coolingevaporator coils 7 are not activated during this process. If thetemperature of the air is not high enough to meet the comfort needs ofthe occupants the heater element 17 may provide additional heat to theair stream 12 which contains the moisture from the desiccant material.The air stream 18 enters the cabin as warm or hot humid air to providecomfortable healthful heated air for the occupants of the vehicle. Thesupply of moisture for the process is provided by the other side of theapparatus.

The automatic control unit sensors measure the relative humidity of boththe outside air and the cabin air, and if the occupant has selectedfresh air for the cabin then the automatic control unit will select as asource of moisture either outside or cabin air with it's preferencetoward the air with the higher relative humidity, however, if the cabinair is set to recirculate then the automatic control unit will selectoutside air as 10 the source of moisture for the “A” portion of thedesiccant wheel. The air stream 10 is the source of moisture for theprocess. Air stream 10 is pulled through the apparatus by 8 the outsidefan and passes through 15 the heat exchanger for the pre-cooler whichmay add heat to 10 the air stream when the pre-cooler is activated. Theair stream continues through 13 another heat exchange which is notactivated for this process. The air stream then enters “A” theadsorption side of the desiccant wheel where the moisture in air stream10 is adsorbed into the anhydrous dessicant material. After the moistureis adsorbed out of the outside air 10, the dry air 11 is ejected formthe apparatus by the outside air fan 8 into the atmosphere. The torquemotor 6 slowly rotates the desiccant wheel 4 through the (B) position inthe case where the moisture in the desiccant wheel is evaporated out ofthe desiccant into the hot air stream. The heater elements 3 provide theheat to raise the air temperature providing the hot air necessary toperform the regeneration (evaporation of moisture out of the desiccant)of the desiccant coating on the wheel.

In summary, the (A) side of the desiccant wheel 4 accumulates moisture,then as the wheel slowly rotates into the (B) position the desiccant onthe wheel releases the moisture into the hot air stream 12. The outsideair fan 8 pulls outside air through the apparatus and then expels theair back outside. During the humidification cycle the following itemsare not activated: 7 the evaporator, or 13 heat exchanger. Under normalenvironmental conditions the need to humidify and cool the cabin airseldom occurs. Although the system normally only needs to providehumidification while the heater for the cabin is operating, a differentvariation of the inventive apparatus can be modified to performhumidification and cooling, however, such an alternative would beinefficient and is not shown in this drawing.

The function of dehumidification: The inventive apparatus is capable ofsupplying dehumidified air which has had the moisture removed from theair stream passing through the “B” side of the desiccant wheel. The airsource 9 entering the cabin side of the apparatus may be outside air orrecirculated cabin air which is pushed through the apparatus by 1 thecabin side fan and passes through heat element 3 which is deactivatedduring this process. The air stream then passes through the “B” portionof the slowly rotating desiccant wheel, where the anhydrous desiccantmaterial adsorbs the moisture out of the air stream. The dehumidifiedair stream then enters the pre-cooler 14 which may be activated by theautomatic control unit when the air stream 10 passing through 15 theheat exchanger has a temperature closer to the desired cabin temperaturethan that of the dehumidified air stream exiting the “B” portion of thedesiccant wheel. When the pre-cooler is activated by the automaticcontrol unit power is supplied to a circulator pump (not shown) whichcauses a coolant fluid to circulate between 14 the pre-cooler (heatexchanger) and 10 another heat exchanger connected by tubes or hosed(not shown) to circulate the coolant between the two heat exchangers.The dehumidified air stream next passes through the air-conditioningevaporator cooling coils which may be activated by the automatic controlunit to lower the temperature of the dehumidified air stream going tothe cabin. The cool/cold dry air 12 going to the cabin passes throughthe deactivated heat element 17 which is a heat exchanger not used whenthe air needed to be cooled. The dehumidified cool/cold air stream 18 isdirected by the automatic control unit either to the inside of thewindshield glass to prevent fog or frost on the windshield or isdirected into the cabin or the automatic control unit may direct the airstream to both the cabin and the windshield. As the hydrous desiccantmaterial from the “B” position of the desiccant wheel slowly rotatesinto the “A” position to have the moisture removed form the desiccant,the air stream 10 is utilized to evaporate the moisture out of thedesiccant material when the air stream 10 may be heated by the heatexchanger 15, when it is activated, and heat exchanger 13 which mayutilize excess engine heat to raise the temperature of the air stream tothe level necessary to cause the moisture in the desiccant material inthe “A” position to evaporate into 11 the hot air stream which is pulledout of the apparatus by the outside air fan 8 which then sects the hothumid air into the atmosphere.

When the automatic control unit sensors indicate that the relativehumidity has been lowered to an acceptable relative humidity level thecontrol unit turns off the power to 6 the desiccant wheel rotationtorque motor causing the apparatus to discontinue the dehumidificationprocess and allow the apparatus to continue to regulate the cabin airtemperature without changing the level of the relative humidity. Whenthe automatic control unit sensors indicate that the cabin airtemperature is below the desired temperature level and the cabin needseither cabin heat with a lower relative humidity or windshield defrostwith heat, the automatic control unit activates the same components asere activated for dehumidified cool/cold air, except the 14 pre-coolerand the air-conditioner evaporation cooling coils 7 are deactivated, andthe heat element 17 which may be a heat exchanger utilizing excessengine heat is activated to increase the temperature of the dehumidifiedair stream to the desired temperature to defog/defrost the windshield orincrease the temperature of the cabin, an option (not shown) in thisdrawing is a separate vent line and air valve which would allow theautomatic control unit to direct hot dehumidified air toward thewindshield to heat and defog/defrost the glass and provide a differentair stream temperature regulated for the cabin of the dehumidified airfor improved occupant comfort during windshield defrosting at adifferent temperature. With this option, the dehumidified air stream issplit with one portion going to the windshield with a temperaturenecessary to defog/defrost the windshield and the other portion of theair stream with it's temperature regulated separately to provideoccupant comfort.

FIG. 63 is a side view of a desiccant wheel vehiclehumidification/dehumidification/defog unit similar to the inventiveapparatus shown in FIG. 61 without the pre-cooler feature and 13 theheat exchanger has been replaced by 2 the air-condenser coils to providethe necessary heat energy to regenerate the desiccant material in the“A” position of the desiccant wheel rotation. In this alternative of theinventive apparatus the heat energy for regeneration of the desiccant isderived from the heat of the air-conditioner when the air-conditioner isoperating or from the heater when the heater is operating.

FIG. 64 is a side view of a desiccant wheel vehiclehumidification/dehumidification/defog unit similar to the inventiveapparatus shown in FIG. 61 without the pre-cooler feature and theair-conditioner condenser coils 2 have been placed in air stream 10 toprovide both cooling of the condenser coils and additional excess heatenergy to assist Item 13 heat exchanger which could utilize excessengine heat energy to raise the temperature of air stream 10 which willregenerate the desiccant in the “A” position of wheel rotation.

FIG. 65 is a side view of a desiccant wheel vehiclehumidification/dehumidification/defog unit similar to the inventiveapparatus shown in FIG. 61 without the pre-cooler feature. The apparatusis also similar to FIG. 64 except the air-conditioner condenser has beenremoved from the air stream of the apparatus and the heat energy forregeneration is supplied by only the excess engine heat to heatexchangers 3 or 13.

FIG. 66 is a side view of a desiccant wheel vehiclehumidification/dehumidification/defog unit with a pre-cooler similar tothe inventive apparatus shown in FIG. 61 with the exception that theheat exchanger 15 has been repositioned out of 10 the air stream whichpasses through the desiccant wheel and placed where the air stream 16 ispulled through the heat exchanger without increasing the air temperatureof the air flow through the desiccant wheel “A”. This arrangement of theheat exchanger would allow for the operation of the pre-cooler withoutincreasing the temperature of the air stream providing moisture for theadsorption process which with a higher air temperature would reduce theadsorption capability of the desiccant when the air temperature isincreased. This arrangement of 15 the heat exchanger would enable theautomatic control unit to operate the pre-cooler while the heat element3 is heating 9 the air stream performing the evaporation of moisture outof the desiccant material in the “B” position of wheel rotation whichprovides moist hot air to the cabin. The heat element 3 increases theair temperature to a level high enough to effectively evaporate themoisture out of the desiccant while the pre-cooler can reduce thetemperature to a lower temperature for passenger comfort. The automaticcontrol unit will activate or deactivate the coolant fluid pump (notshown) to regulate 12 the air stream entering the cabin.

FIG. 67 is a side view of a desiccant wheel vehiclehumidification/dehumidification/defog unit with a pre-cooler and two PCXcoils which is similar to the inventive apparatus shown in FIG. 61. Theapparatus is shown with the pre-cooler configured to produce maximumhumidification with moderate or high temperature heat. The apparatusoperates in a similar manner as previously described in FIG. 62 and inaddition the pre-cooler coils 14 are used to lower the air temperatureafter the moisture is evaporated into the air stream. This drawing showsthe pre-cooler 14 heat exchanger matched with the (PCX2) pre-cooled heatexchanger 19 or the pre-cooler heat exchanger 14 may be matched with 15PCX. The automatic control unit selects which heat exchanger should beutilized activates a coolant flow valve to cause the coolant to bedirected to the desired heat exchanger.

The function of humidification: the cabin or fresh air enters theapparatus through cabin fan 1 as described previously. The air is heatedby heat element 3 before the air enters the desiccant wheel 4 toevaporate the moisture out of the desiccant and increase the relativehumidity of the air stream. The air exits the (B) side of the desiccantwheel as a hot and humid air stream. The air enters the pre-cooler 14where the temperature is regulated by the pre-cooler. The evaporator 7and heat element 17 are not normally activated during this process. Theair 18 going to the cabin may have the air temperature and the relativehumidity both regulated by the apparatus during humidification. Theoutside air fan 8 forces the cool air flow 11 over the pre-coolerexchange unit (PCX2) 19. Coolant fluid is circulated between thepre-cooler 14 and the PCX2 19 by fluid coolant pump 20. In this way theapparatus first uses maximum heat for evaporation of moisture out of thedesiccant, then removes some of the heat in the air stream before itenters the cabin and the air stream 10 going to “A” the adsorption sideof the desiccant wheel remains at a lower temperature to provide maximumadsorption.

The function of dehumidification: The apparatus automatically determineswhen the air should be dehumidified for the cabin or when the air goingto the air-conditioner cooling unit should be dehumidified or whendefog/defrost is necessary and automatically activates the necessarycomponents to produce the desired results. Dehumidification may beaccomplished while the environmental system is either heating or coolingthe cabin air. To produce a hot dry air stream 18 for the cabin when thetemperature is below the desired level and the relative humidity in thecabin is above the desired level. The cabin side fan 1 may pull thehumid air out of the cabin and into the apparatus. The air is forcedthrough the deactivated heat element 3 into the (B) side of thedesiccant wheel 4. As the desiccant adsorbs the moisture out of the coolair stream the relative humidity decreases and the dry cool air 12 isforced into the heat element 17 where the temperature is raised to thedesired level. The hot dry air 18 continues to be delivered to the cabinuntil the measurement by the sensors which are electrically transmittedto the automatic control unit equal the desired level for temperatureand humidity. If the sensors indicate that more heat is needed but nothumidity, the control unit continues to operate the cabin fan 1 and heatelement 17. The control unit turns off the power to the desiccant wheeltorque motor 6 which will cause the desiccant wheel to stop rotating andthe process of dehumidification will also stop. To stop thedehumidification process the control unit may also turn off the outsideair fan 11 and it may also stop the flow of heat to the heat exchanger13. The requirement for dehumidification normally occurs when theair-conditioner is cooling the cabin air or when the outside relativehumidity is high but dehumidification can be accomplished as describedin the previous FIGURES. If the control unit senses the relativehumidity is below the desired level the apparatus will start thehumidification cycle as previously mentioned. If the air-conditionercooling is on when the automatic control unit senses that the relativehumidity needs to be lowered the system automatically starts thedehumidification cooling cycle. The benefit of having an apparatus withthe 14 pre-cooler matched with 15 PCX heat exchanger or 19 PCX2 heatexchanger is: (1) the pre-cooler can operate without increasing thetemperature of air stream 10 or the pre-cooler can increase thetemperature of 10 air stream. (2) depending on which heat exchanger isselected, PCX or PCX2 the temperature of the 14 pre-cooler's coolantfluid can be better regulated.

FIG. 68 is a side view of a desiccant wheel vehiclehumidification/dehumidification/defog unit with a pre-cooler, PCX2coils, and a split set of coils 15 & 16 to provide heat exchange for thepre-cooler and the condenser for the air-conditioner; and is similar toalternative inventive apparatus described in FIG. 62. In FIGS. 68 Items21 & 22 damper valves and 155 Items 21, 22, & 23 damper valves are addedto isolate the “A” desiccant portion of the wheel after engine shut downand after the desiccant has been regenerated to provide instantdehumidification from the residual regeneration effect on the desiccantcontained in the closed apparatus and is available to provide instantdehumidification when the engine is started again. The evaporator 7cools the air going to the cabin in a way similar to the traditionalcabin air-conditioner.

The function of dehumidification: The apparatus removes the humidityfrom the air going to the evaporator coils 7 of the air-conditioningcooling. Cabin or outside air 9 enters through the cabin side fan 1 andis forced through the apparatus. The air passes through the deactivatedheat element 3, then enters the desiccant wheel 4 on the (13) side wherethe moisture in the air is adsorbed into the desiccant. The pre-cooler14 is activated by the automatic control unit, not shown, when theoutside air 10 temperature is lower than the temperature of the airexiting the desiccant wheel 4. The coolant fluid in the pre-cooler coil14 is circulates through pump 20, to the pre-cooler heat exchange coils15 or 19 the PCX2 an alternate heat exchanger where the outside air 10passes through the heat exchangers. When 14 the pre-cooler heatexchanger's coolant fluid is routed to the matching heat exchanger 15the air stream 10 temperature may increase and cause the desiccant toadsorb less moisture during cabin humidification mode, for this reasonthe alternate heat exchanger PCX2 is located below the desiccant wheelwhere the increase in air stream temperature for 11 will not effect thedesiccant on the wheel since the air stream has past the desiccant wheelbefore it passes through the PCX2 heat exchanger. The coolant fluidwould be directed to heat exchanger 15 when additional heat is desiredfor air stream 10 the cabin is in the dehumidification mode. As the airstream 10 enters the system the heat transfers out of the coils 15 intothe air stream which next enters the heat exchanger 13 where additionalheat may be added for greater evaporation of the moisture in the “A”side of the desiccant wheel. The heat exchanger 13 may be heated byexcess heat from the engine. The source of the excess engine heat may beeither the engine coolant system or excess heat from the engine exhaustsystem. The outside air is pulled through the heat exchanger 13 and the(A) side of the desiccant wheel 4 by the outside air side fan 8. As thehot air passes through the “A” side of the desiccant wheel 4 where themoisture is evaporated out of the desiccant material. The evaporation ofthe moisture regenerates the desiccant coated on wheel 4. Theregeneration prepares the desiccant for the adsorption cycle when itenters the (B) side of the apparatus. The torque motor slowly rotatesthe wheel 4 into the (B) side of the apparatus to continuously repeatthe process. The condenser coils 16 for the air-conditioner cooling unitmay be located in the entry of the outside air stream or in another areaof the motorized vehicle. The condenser coil location for theair-conditioner cooling unit may be split, with some located in theapparatus as item 16 and others located outside the apparatus at anotherlocation in the motorized vehicle. The inventive apparatus reduces therelative humidity of the cabin side air going to the evaporator coils 7thus increasing the efficiency of the cooling unit because the unit iscooling dry air in place of humid air. Since the relative humidity ofthe air passing over the evaporator coils 7 is less, the dew point ofthe air passing over the coils is lower. This lower dew point will allowthe temperature of the coils to be lower without forming condensation.The lower temperature of the evaporator coils 7 will allow theair-conditioner cooling unit to deliver colder and dryer air to thecabin.

The cooling unit can perform the cabin cooling function with a smallervolume of air flow (CFM) for two reasons: 1.) the air has a lowertemperature and 2.) the air has a lower relative humidity allowing theoccupant's body to naturally cool itself through more rapid evaporation.The occupants are more comfortable and the motorized vehicle consumesless fuel. Because the environmental unit operates with a lower volumeof air (less CFM) this produces a quieter cooling unit with quickercooling results and the occupants avoids the necessity of enduring aloud blast of cool air in the face. In this drawing the air-conditioningcooling and heat system of the motorized vehicle are shown integratedinto the inventive apparatus. This alternative of the inventiveapparatus shown in this drawing will also provide the windshield andwindow glass defrost/defog/condensation removal functions automaticallywhen the automatic control unit's sensors detect environmentalconditions that could result in windshield condensation. Thedefog/defrost function may be performed with either fresh outside air orrecirculated cabin air set by the occupant of the vehicle. The airstream 9 is pulled into the apparatus by the cabin side fan 1 whichforces the air stream through the deactivated heat element 3 and passesthrough the “B” side of the desiccant wheel where the moisture in theair stream is adsorbed into the desiccant material. The pre-cooler 14and the air-conditioner evaporator may be deactivated during the defogmode. The dehumidified air stream 12 then passes through the heatelement 17 which may be activated to melt outside ice on the windshieldor increase the effect of the dehumidified air stream on defrosting ofthe inside glass. A damper valve (not shown) would allow the automaticcontrol unit to provide dehumidified air 12 heated toward the windshieldwhile the remainder of the air stream could pass into the cabin withoutheating or in another configuration the air may be heated for thewindshield defrosting and the air going to the cabin could be cooled bythe air-conditioner evaporator. The residual regeneration featureprovides instant dehumidification. Depending on the vehicle's residualheat energy available after engine shut down a vehicle could beconfigured one of two ways: (I.) After engine shut down the wheel torquemotor 6 is deactivated to stop the rotation of the desiccant wheel. The1 cabin side fan, 3 heat element, 14 pre-cooler, 7 evaporator, and 17heat element on the cabin side of the apparatus are deactivated. Airstream 10 is pulled by fan 8 through heat exchangers 15 & 16 and heatexchanger 13 which continues to have the engine residual heattransferred to the heat exchanger by the engine coolant circulator pump.Air stream 10 continues to receive the heat from the heat exchanger aslong as there is sufficient heat energy to evaporate the moisture in the“A” portion of the wheel or until the desiccant has completed it'sregeneration cycle after which fan 8 is deactivated and the air valves(damper doors) 21 & 22 close to prevent any outside moisture fromentering the closed area and become adsorbed into the desiccant wheel.The anhydrous desiccant remains isolated until the engine is restartedwhich activates the apparatus and the anhydrous desiccant rotates intothe “B” position as anhydrous desiccant before the engine temperaturehas increased to the required evaporation temperature. (II.) Theapparatus functions as previously described with the difference that foran engine with more residual excess heat the apparatus would have two(2) additional damper doors or air valves (not shown) to prevent airfrom entering 9 or 18 which would close as soon as the engine stops. Thecabin side fan 1, and the other components of the cabin side air streamwould be deactivated (1, 3, 14, 7, & 17). The desiccant wheel torquemotor remains activated to continue to slowly rotate the wheel throughthe hot air stream to regenerate the complete wheel after which themotors and pumps are deactivated, which would leave the completedesiccant wheel regenerated, and all the doors are closed to isolate thedesiccant from any moisture that may be in the outside atmosphere.

FIG. 69 is a side view of a desiccant wheel vehiclehumidification/dehumidification/defog unit with a pre-cooler, PCX coils,and a split set of coils to provide heat exchange for the pre-cooler andthe air-conditioner similar to the inventive apparatus shown in FIG. 68,with the exception that 15 the heat exchanger has been moved to alocation below the desiccant wheel which will allow the apparatus topass an air stream through 15 the heat exchanger with out increasing thetemperature of the air stream going through the “A” side of 4 thedesiccant wheel and a damper door or air valve 23 has been also added toprovide a complete closure for the apparatus to prevent the intrusion ofmoisture after the desiccant wheel has been prepared for residualregeneration. The apparatus is capable of using 14 the pre-cooler toregulate the temperature of 12 the air stream going to the cabin undercertain conditions without having to activate the air-conditionercooling evaporator coils which would have use additional energy. Thefunctions of the pre-cooler are similar to those shown in FIG. 66 whichalso has the 15 heat exchanger located in this position.

FIG. 70 is a diagram showing the various positions of air valves andcomponents for a desiccant wheel vehiclehumidification/dehumidification/defog system where the humidification &dehumidification processes is shown for the apparatus with the functionsshown independently and separated from the traditional motorized vehicleenvironmental control unit. This variation of the inventive apparatusmay be adapted to the conventional heating and cooling unit by air ductsand damper valves as shown in FIGS. 60 and 70 through 75. The FIGS. 60and 70 through 75 show an apparatus that may be attached to an existingmotorized vehicle environmental unit for a previously manufacturedmotorized vehicle. Although this series of drawings and diagrams andothers throughout these descriptions do not identify air filters inevery case, the air entering the desiccant wheel or canister must befiltered to prevent the accumulation of foreign particles in the smallair ways of the internal structure and percent the air stream fromimpinging on the desiccant coated on the surface of the structuralmaterial. The type of filters utilized may vary depending on therequirements of the vehicle. The effective life of the desiccant coatedon the wheel depends on the proper adhesion of the desiccant to thestructure and the prevention of foreign particle entering the apparatus.If centrifugal filters or other indefinite life filters are not used,then the replacement schedule of filters dirty must be considered by theoperator or dirty filter indicators should be considered by themanufacturer to warn the operator to the air flow restriction caused bydirty filters on all units. The dimensions of the inventive apparatuscould be modified to match the existing environmental unit of variousmotorized vehicles. In FIG. 70 the air valves (damper doors) are shownin various positions for the purpose of identification only, theapparatus would not operate as shown in this drawing. In most cases theregenerative side of the apparatus consist of items: 1 the heatexchanger providing the heat for regeneration during thedehumidification mode and defog mode for the windshield, the outside air2 or cabin air 9 goes through the heat exchanger 1 to produce a hot airsteam 3, the hot air stream 3 enters the regeneration (evaporation) side“M” of the desiccant wheel 4, where the air stream is converted to awarm/hot moist air stream when the moisture in the desiccant evaporatesin to the air stream, both air valves 5 & 6 are shown in the closedposition, when air valve 5 is open the air will flow to 7 the outsideatmosphere. If air valve 5 is closed and 6 is open the hot/warm airstream will flow into 8 the cabin to provide moist heated air for thecabin which is either fresh outside air or recirculated cabin air.

In most cases the adsorption side of the apparatus may be described asconsisting of: an outside air source 12 with air valve 13 open or cabinair 25 with 14 air valve (damper door) open. Air stream 20 from either12 or 25 enters the desiccant wheel 4 and passes through the portion ofthe wheel located in the “D” position where the moisture in the airstream is adsorbed into the anhydrous desiccant material. The desiccantwheel 4 is slowly rotated to transfer the moisture from the “D” positionto the “M” position of the case by the wheel torque motor not shown.Also not shown are other various components such as the seals, filters,fan, fan motors, sensors and the automatic control unit. Air stream 27exits the desiccant wheel with a reduced level of relative humidity tosupply 11 an air stream to defog/defrost the windshield, 21 an airstream to lower the relative humidity of the cabin, and/or 24 toincrease the efficiency of the air-conditioner cooling. When air valve15 is open air stream 27 passes through heat exchanger 10 which may beutilized to increase the temperature of the dehumidified air stream 11which exits the windshield vent as either a cool or hot dehumidified airstream to remove the moisture from the inside of the windshield glass.The apparatus is capable of defrosting the inside of the windshieldglass utilizing recirculated cabin air. When air valve 17 is open airstream 27 may enter through air valve 18 for cabin dehumidification orair valve 19 to increase the air-conditioning efficiency. When air valve15 & 17 are in position 16, air stream 27 will flow to both thewindshield defog air way, and the air way to the cabin and theair-conditioner cooling coils 23. When air valve 19 is closed air valve22 may be opened to allow air stream 26 which may be either outside airor cabin air to pass through 23 the air-conditioner coils withoutpassing through the desiccant wheel. Air valve 28 may be opened when 15& 17 are closed to allow air stream to exit to 29 the outsideatmosphere.

FIG. 71 is a diagram showing the air flow through a variation of theinventive apparatus where dehumidification is utilized for defrostingthe windshield. Item 12 fresh outside air or 25 recirculated cabin airmay be utilized to defog/defrost the inside windshield glass of amotorized vehicle. Air stream 25 which is recirculated cabin air isshown passing through open air valve 14 which enters the slowly rotatingdesiccant wheel where the anhydrous desiccant adsorbs the moisture outof the air stream and exits 27 as a dehumidified air stream to passthrough open air valve 15 and enter the heat exchanger 10 which mayutilizes excess engine heat to increase the temperature of 11 thedehumidified air stream which exits the windshield vent and impinges onthe inside of the windshield glass to prevent or remove condensation.The heat from 10 the heat exchanger may be utilized to melt snow or iceon the exterior of the windshield glass or increase the evaporationeffect of 11 on the inside of the glass. On the evaporation side of theapparatus air stream 9 from the cabin would not be utilized during thismode of operation. Air stream 2 from outside atmosphere passes throughheat exchange 1 to increase the temperature of the air stream to thelevel necessary to cause the moisture in the hydrous desiccant toevaporate as 3 the hot air stream passes through that portion of 4 thedesiccant wheel which has slowly rotated into the “M” position. Airvalve 5 is open to allow the hot humid air stream to exit the apparatusinto the atmosphere. The apparatus has utilized desiccant materials toremoved the moisture from a cabin air stream and transfer that moistureto another air stream which expelled the moisture into the atmosphere.The apparatus is also capable of supplying fresh outside air 12 toperform the windshield defrosting when air valve 13 is open and 14 isclosed.

FIG. 72 is a diagram of an alternative of the inventive apparatusutilizing a similar methods to those shown in FIG. 71, but wheredehumidified air 21 is directed to the cabin to reduce the relativehumidity of the cabin air. The air valve 17 is open to allow thedehumidified air to pass directly into the cabin while air valve 15 isclosed to prevent 27 the air stream for going to the windshield vent.Either 25 cabin air may be recirculated into the cabin after the watervapor is removed when air valve 14 is open, or 12 fresh outside air maybe utilized when air valve 13 is open and 14 is closed.

FIG. 73 is a diagram of an alternative of the inventive apparatusutilizing a similar methods as those shown in FIGS. 71 & 72 to providedehumidified air, but where the dehumidified air stream 27 may pass intoboth the cabin 21 and also defrost the windshield, where air valves 15 &17 are open and 16 may move up or down to adjust the percent of air flowto each vent. Air stream 21 may pass through a heat exchanger (notshown) to regulate the temperature of the air cabin stream bytransferring excess engine heat to the air stream before it enters thecabin.

FIG. 74 is a diagram of an alternative of the inventive apparatus wherethe method of dehumidification is similar to those shown in FIG. 72 toprovide dehumidified air, but where air valve 18 to the cabin is closedand air valve 19 is open to direct the dehumidified air stream throughthe air-conditioner evaporator coils 23 to cool the air stream before itenters the cabin. The removal of the moisture in 27 the air streambefore the air passes through the air-conditioner coils 23 increases theefficiency of the air-conditioner. The occupant of the vehicle mayselect fresh outside air 12 as the air source or recirculated cabin air25 for dehumidification of the air stream going into the air-conditionercoils.

FIG. 75 is a diagram of an alternative of the inventive apparatus whereeither fresh outside air or recirculated cabin air is heated andhumidified to provide the cabin with a warm/hot humidified air stream.The out side air 2 or recirculated air 9 is selected by the occupantwhich passes through 1 a heat exchanger utilizing excess engine heat toraise the air temperature to a level which will cause the moisture inthe portion of the desiccant wheel 4 which is in the “M” positioned toevaporate into the air stream and pass through the open air valve 6which directs the air stream into the cabin. The cabin relative humiditylevel is regulated by the automatic control unit (not shown) whichactivates or deactivates the wheel torque motor to start or stop thehumidification process. The apparatus functions similar to the methoddescribed in FIGS. 57 & 58. The source of moisture for thehumidification is either 12 outside air or 25 cabin air.

FIG. 76 is a diagram of a duel desiccant canister humidification systemfor a surface motorized vehicle for land or sea operation which issimilar to FIG. 120 where the moisture given off by the occupants of thecabin can be reclaimed and evaporated into the fresh air stream enteringthe cabin .

FIG. 77 is a diagram of an alternative of an inventive apparatus with aduel desiccant canister humidification system capable of humidification,dehumidification, windshield defrosting, and enhanced air-conditionerefficiency utilizing two rotary crossover valves. The use of desiccantcanisters in place of a desiccant wheel may offer greater flexibility inthe shape, location and size options for the apparatus. The canistersare identified during this cycle as “E” which is releasing moisturethrough the process of evaporation and “D” which is adsorbing moistureout of the air stream and producing a dry (dehumidified) air stream. Theautomatic control unit, sensors, fans, the heat exchanger coolant fluidsystem and filters are not shown.

The function of humidification: Fresh outside air 14 or cabin air 15 maybe selected by the occupant of the vehicle on the automatic control unitafter which the automatic control unit activates the air valve (damper)to deliver the desired air stream to 1 the heat exchanger whichincreases the temperature of the air stream to the level necessary toperform the evaporation of the moisture out of the hydrous desiccantmaterial when the hot air passes through 13 the input rotary crossovervalve and then for this cycle enters desiccant canister “E” where thehydrous desiccant is heated by the hot air stream and the evaporation ofthe moisture out of the desiccant occurs. The warm/hot humidified airstream then is directed by 4 the output rotary crossover valve to airvalve 11 which directs the hot humid air stream through air valve 17then next into the vehicle heater vent 6 for the cabin heating withmoist hot air. The moisture for the process is supplied to the apparatusby either 2 outside air or 7 inside cabin air. The air valve 3 iscontrolled by the automatic control unit which selects the air sourcewith the highest relative humidity. The air stream then is directed by13 the rotary crossover valve to the anhydrous desiccant canister “D”where the moisture in the air stream is adsorbed by the desiccantcanister during this cycle. The air stream which exits the “D” canisterthrough the output rotary crossover valve 4 leaves it's moisture in thedesiccant material and is directed through air valve 12 to the outsideatmosphere 8. As the sensors for the automatic control unit detect thatthe moisture has evaporated out of canister “E” and canister “D” isbecoming saturated with moisture the automatic control unit rotates therotary crossover valves 13 & 4 to switch to different canisters toalternate the process for each canister. A four (4) canister apparatus(not shown) is an alternative to the inventive apparatus where the duelpairs of canisters would cycle at different times to provideuninterrupted air flow and would discontinue utilizing the air streamfrom the canister as it approaches the completion of it's cycle whichwould produce the most desirable air stream for the cabin. When thesensors indicate to the automatic control unit that the relativehumidity has reached the desired level and humidification is no longerrequired, the automatic control unit discontinues the cycling of thecrossover valves and allows the air stream to continue to flow throughone of the canisters which stops the humidification process since nomore moisture is added to the desiccant.

The function of dehumidification: When the automatic control unitsensors indicate to the controller that dehumidification is required theautomatic control unit may utilize 2 outside fresh air or 7 cabin airwhich will be dehumidified and delivered to the cabin depending on whichair source the occupant has set on the automatic control unit. Theautomatic control unit activates 3 air valve to select the desired airstream which is directed to the 13 the input rotary crossover valvewhich for this cycle directs the air stream to be dehumidified into “D”desiccant canister which contains anhydrous desiccant to adsorb themoisture out of the air stream as it passes through the canister to 4the output rotary valve which directs the air stream to 11 air valvewhich directs the dehumidified air stream into several possibledirections depending on the desired result: (1) for windshielddefrosting with or without heat or cabin heat with low relative humiditythe air valve 11 directs the air stream to 9 a heat exchanger utilizedto add heat derived from excess engine heat to the air stream when thecoolant flow valve (not shown) is opened. When the coolant fluid flowvalve is closed heat is not added. The air stream exits the 9 heatexchanger and passes through another air valve which regulates theamount of air flow to either 20 the windshield defrost vent or 5 thecabin air vent. Air valve 11 may be utilized to direct a hotdehumidified air stream to defrost the windshield while deliveringanother portion of the dehumidified air stream to the cabin through vent6 or 19. (2) for dehumidified cabin air or increased air-conditionercooling efficiency air valve 11 directs the dehumidified air stream from4 the output rotary crossover valve to air valve 17 which regulates theair flow to either 6 the cabin air vent or for cooling to 18 theair-conditioner evaporator coils which cools the dehumidified air streambefore it is directed into the cabin by 19 the air-conditioner vent. Thedesiccant canisters have similar capabilities to the desiccant wheelutilizing the alternating action of rotary crossover valves or othertypes of air valves which transfer moisture from one air stream toanother.

FIG. 78 is a drawing of an engine exhaust heat exchanger which iscapable of transferring excess engine heat from one air stream toanother which is utilized to . Caution must be given to the manufactureand location of the apparatus to prevent carbon dioxide gas and otherengine exhaust gases from mixing with the cabin air stream or damage tothe apparatus. The input and out put arrows labeled “EX” indicate theflow of high temperature exhaust gas from the engine which passesthrough a section of the exhaust pipe surrounded by another enclosedcasement which contains the air stream receiving the heat from the hotexhaust gas without mixing with the exhaust gas. The heated air streamwill be utilized as cabin air in some modes of operation of theinventive apparatus.

FIG. 79 is a drawing of an excess engine heat recovery system showingsome of the sources of excess engine heat. Any one or combination of thefollowing Items may be utilized to provide the heat source forregeneration of the desiccant which is capable of causing the moisturein the hydrous desiccant to evaporate into the hot air stream. Item 1 isthe AIR FLOW OVER THE ENGINE BLOCK contained in an air shroud capable ofdirecting the hot air to the desired location. Item 2 represents the AIRGOING INTO AIR-CONDITIONER CONDENSER COILS & ENGINE COOLANT (RADIATOR),which then is directed into 10 the DESICCANT SYSTEM ROTARY VALVE. Item 3a FAN FOR ENGINE AND EXHAUST RECOVERY SYSTEM to force the hot air streamthrough the engine shroud and into the inventive apparatus. Item 4 theFAN FOR CONDENSER & RADIATOR cooling which forces the hot air streaminto the inventive apparatus. Item 6 EXHAUST MANIFOLD with an air shroudencasement to direct the air stream which is heated by the manifold intothe inventive apparatus. Item 7 is the CATALYTIC CONVERTER encased in anair shroud to direct the hot air surrounding the catalytic converterinto the inventive apparatus. Item 8 is a EXHAUST PIPE HEAT EXCHANGERwith an (ARROW WHICH REPRESENTS EXHAUST FLOW DIRECTION) similar to thecomponent shown in FIG. 78. Item 9 is the AIR-CONDITIONER CONDENSERCOIL. Iterm 10. is the DESICCANT ROTARY AIR VALVE or SLIDE AIR VALVEused to alternate the hot air flow between the “A” & “B” desiccantcanisters. Item 11 is the ENGINE COOLANT RADIATOR. Item 12 is the ENGINECOMPARTMENT WALL or ENGINE COOLING which is utilized to contain the airflow over the engine. Item 13 is the AIR TRAVELING THROUGH A SEPARATEAIR DUCT which is directed over the EXHAUST MANIFOLD, CATALYTICCONVERTER, EXHAUST PIPE HEAT EXCHANGER, then directed into 10 theDESICCANT SYSTEM ROTARY VALVE. Item 14 is the AIR DUCT TO EXHAUSTMANIFOLD. Items “A” & “B” are DESICCANT CANISTERS.

FIG. 80A is a drawing of a NOMEX honeycomb center drive desiccant wheelsimilar to the one shown in FIG. 9B. Detail “A” shows the female splinedrive which connects to the drive shaft from the rotary torque motor forthe wheel. Detail “A” shows Item 1 which can be made of metal, plasticor NYLON material and bonded to the center of 2 the NOMEX honeycomb.Item 3 is the perimeter ring which may be metal, plastic, or NYLON toprovide a smooth surface for the seals to contact and add strength tothe wheel.

FIG. 80B is a drawing of a NOMEX honeycomb center drive desiccant wheelsimilar to FIG. 80A showing the retained moisture content of thedesiccant during rotation. The arrows on each side of 1 the femalespline drive represent the direction of rotation as the hot air streampasses through the half of the wheel in the foreground 3 which is in theregeneration cycle while the other half of the wheel 2 is in theadsorption cycle. The three arrows pointing downward represent thedirection of air flow for the hot air stream through the honeycomb whichevaporates the moisture out of the desiccant. The sloped bandsidentified with the percentage numbers represent the percent of moisturecontent as the desiccant wheel slowly rotates through the regenerativeposition. These bands indicate how the hot air stream evaporates out themoisture at a higher rate when it first enters the small passage ways ofthe honeycomb and when the air approaches the bottom of the wheel theair has less ability to remove moisture since it is becoming saturatedwith moisture and it's temperature is beginning to decrease. The longerthe wheel is exposed to the hot air stream the lower the moisturecontent resulting in the slope of the percentage band lines. The speedof rotation, size and shape of the wheel combined with the temperatureof both the adsorption and evaporation air stream must be considered foreach application to gain the most efficient use of the apparatus. Theautomatic control unit may monitor the temperature and relative humidityof the input and out put air stream to regulate the operation of theapparatus to gain the optimum efficiency.

FIG. 81 is a detail view of the desiccant coated NOMEX honeycombstructure utilized in the desiccant wheel and desiccant canisters toprovide the surface area exposure to the air stream with arrows showingthe air flow (A) direction as the air stream enters the passagewaysformed by the NOMEX honeycomb. The desiccant may be coated on thesurface of the honeycomb NOMEX which provides the structural shape uponwhich the desiccant is coated to provide maximum exposure of thedesiccant to the air stream. The interior surface of all the smallpassage ways formed by the honeycomb is preferably coated with thedesiccant material. Detail “A” shows two different size enlargements ofthe honeycomb structure, adhesive, and desiccant. The desiccant may beapplied in various ways, one of which is to first coat the surface ofthe NOMEX with adhesive and then apply the desiccant to the adhesivecovering the surface of the NOMEX another is to mix the desiccant withthe adhesive and apply them both to the surface of the NOMEX.

FIG. 82 is a detail view of Super Surface NOMEX honeycomb which is analternative structure and may be utilized for the wheel or canister toprovide additional surface area for the enhancement of the adsorptionand evaporation process, and increase the structural strength over thetraditional NOMEX honeycomb shape. NOMEX honeycomb has been utilized inthe manufacture of structural assemblies where strength and weight areimportant requirements for the structure such as aircraft and otheritems. In most aircraft structure where the honeycomb is used thehoneycomb is sandwiched between and bonded to two sheets of a flatsurface material to produce a strong but light weight structure. Sincethe limitation of weight is such an important requirement in aircraft,every effort has been made to remove the material weight in aircraftmanufacturing, however, in the case of “Super Surface” honeycomb weighthas been added by the additional shape placed inside the traditionalhoneycomb shape to increase the exposure of surface area to the airstream. Other efforts to increase the surface area have been limited tomaking the size of each cell smaller and in this way the surface area isincreased, however, this has caused a significant limitation to theability of the air to flow through the passage ways. In the lowersection of the drawing Item “H” is showing the honeycomb before it isexpanded with the sheets of NOMEX bonded together. In the upper sectionof the drawing the “Super Surface” honeycomb is shown expanded with theinventive structure added and identified as Items “A” & “B” positionedin the center of the traditional honeycomb structure.

FIG. 83 is a drawing showing a detail view of the steps of expansionwhich causes the Super Surface NOMEX honeycomb to take shape and issimilar to FIG. 82. The manufacturing process starts with flat sheets ofNOMEX which are indexed to locate the strips of adhesive which areplaced on the flat sheets where the bond joints will be located when thestructure is expanded. The variation from the traditional honeycomb isthe addition of other sections of NOMEX which are cut and pre-foldedalong the bend lines as shown in Detail “K” to cause the comers to havesharp bends as identified by Item 4 when the structure is expanded. Theadditional sections Items 8 & 9 have the adhesive applied to the joiningpoints and the sections 8 & 9 are placed between 7 & 10 after which theyare bonded. As the structure is expanded to change the shape from “H” to“A” the inventive shape begins to form as the material moves in thedirection indicated by the arrows next to “A”, “B”, “C”, & “D”. As “A” &“B” move toward each other the area “E” & “F” begin to take the shape ofa square or rectangle as indicated in “G”. Items 1 & 6 are the sheets ofNOMEX forming the traditional structure and sheets 2 & 3 represent theinventive structure which forms the new shape. Item 5 is one of the bondlines. The action of expanding the structure by moving “C” & “D” apartcauses the “E” & “F” to move toward each other causing the folded sheetsto make the new shape. Item “G” is the finished shape upon which thedesiccant will be coated to provide an alternative structure for thewheel and canister filler.

FIG. 84 is a detail view of Poly-Shape NOMEX honeycomb providing an areacapable of receiving a filler material to enhance the adsorption andevaporation process or may be filled with a structural material toincreases the structural strength of the material when used in aircraftor other structural applications. The method of manufacturing this shapeis similar to the method shown in FIGS. 82 & 83 with the exception ofthe elimination of the pre-fold which results in a rounded shape asindicated by Item 5 in place of the square or rectangle shape of theprevious figures. Item 1 is the sheet of NOMEX forming the traditionalhoneycomb shape. Items 3 & 5 are the new inventive air passage waysformed by the added NOMEX material. Item 4 is the adhesive which bondstogether the two pieces of inventive structure. The surface of thisshape may be coated with desiccant to increase the exposed surface areaas compared to the traditional honeycomb shape. The addition of theinventive shape positioned in the traditional honeycomb increases thesurface area exposure to the air stream passing through the structurewithout significantly restricting the air flow. Super Surface honeycombin FIGS. 82 & 83 and the inventive shape in this drawing are bothalternative shapes for the structure of the wheel and canister filler ofthe apparatus.

FIG. 85 is a detail view of Poly-Shape NOMEX honeycomb showing an areafilled with a desiccant material to enhance the adsorption andevaporation process or structural material to provide higher compressionstrength and higher rigidity to side loads by locking the honeycomb intothe expanded position. When the additional inventive shape is added tothe honeycomb to provide greater strength, when Item 5 is a structuralfiller for manufacturing such items as aircraft structure, the inventiveshape may be made by a nonporous material such as NOMEX, however, whenthe filler 5 is a desiccant material to enhance the adsorption andevaporation properties of the desiccant wheel or canister filler theinventive shape of the nonporous NOMEX must be replaced with a poroustype of material such as SONTARA or other material which allows thewater vapor to freely pass through the material and also contains thedesiccant.

FIG. 86 is a detail view and chart showing the increase in surface areaof the Super Surface form over the traditional form of honeycomb with anincrease of 24% in surface area of the walls of the air passages over asmaller size (50% size shown in FIG. 87) of the traditional honeycombshape. The surface area exposure of the passageways identified as Items1 through 12 for a given portion of the wheel or canister have beenmeasured and recorded in the chart in the lower section of the figure.The traditional honeycomb portion of the shape in FIG. 86 is 100%, whilethe traditional shape in FIG. 87 is 50%. With the inventive structureadded to the center of the traditional honeycomb shape of FIG. 86 thesurface area is greater than the surface area of FIG. 87 by 24%.

FIG. 87 is a detail view of traditional honeycomb and a chart showingthe surface area of the traditional honeycomb with the air passagewaysidentified as Items 1 through 12. The total surface area of 224.1 inFIG. 87 may be compared to the total surface area of FIG. 86 which is278.2 and shows a surface area increase of 24% with the inventive shapeover the traditional shape, even though the traditional shape has morehoneycomb shaped cells.

FIG. 88 is a diagram of the sensor for the Automatic Control Unitshowing some of the measurements which may be taken to provide inputinformation to the automatic control unit. The Automatic Control Unitcomponent of the inventive apparatus is unique in several ways since itutilizes desiccants to regulate the motorized vehicle's environmentalsystem by monitoring both inside and outside environmental conditions toselect an appropriate setting for a particular point in time of thevehicle operation with the direct and complete regulation ofenvironmental conditions such as temperature, relative humidity, fanspeed, defrosting of the windshield, air vent selection, and othercomfort, safety, & efficiency features. The Automatic Control Unit is anintegral component of the inventive method since the motorized vehicleoccupants would be distracted from operating the vehicle if only manualcontrol were available to manually activate and deactivate the othercomponents of the apparatus. The Automatic Control Unit may consist ofvarious alternatives of the features described here in and may utilizeeither all of the features or different combinations of the features. Inthis chart two sets of temperature and relative humidity sensors areshown measuring the temperature and relatively humidity of the frontseat cabin area and the air mass close to the windshield of the vehicle.Additional sensors may be added to provide information to the automaticcontrol unit for monitoring the environmental conditions for both theleft and right front seats, additional sensors may be placed in thevehicle to monitor the temperature and relative humidity of the rearseats. Two temperature sensors are shown which measure the temperatureof the inside and outside of the windshield glass, and transmit thereadings to the automatic control unit. A relative humidity andtemperature sensor are shown to measure the outside atmospheretemperature and relative humidity. The automatic control unit utilizesthe information received from the sensors to determine which componentsto activate or deactivate and may also displays some of the informationon the automatic control unit visual display.

FIG. 89 is a diagram showing some of the components which are activated,deactivated or regulated by the output of the automatic control unit.The actual components controlled by the automatic control unit may varydepending on the type of desiccant component (wheel or canister) and thefeatures desired for the vehicle. The inventive apparatus consist ofvarious essential components, one of which is the Automatic ControlUnit, which monitors the outside atmosphere, windshield, cabin airconditions, and various air streams within the apparatus to select oneof the various profiles of environmental conditions which will be mostdesirable, and then activates or deactivates various components toautomatically regulate the interior cabin environmental conditions ofthe motorized vehicle.

FIG. 90 is a diagram showing some of the selections the occupant of amotorized vehicle equipped with the inventive apparatus may utilize toset the desired mode of operation of the Automatic Control Unit hereafter referred to as the “ACU”. When Item 1 the AUTOMATIC mode isselected the Automatic Control Unit (ACU) completely controls theenvironmental control system. In this mode the automatic control unitmonitors the outside temperature and relative humidity to select theappropriate environmental profile which may be similar to the profileshown in FIGS. 92 & 93, the ACU compares the temperature and relativehumidity sensor readings to the desired conditions on the profile andwhen any sensor readings vary from the desired profile settings the ACUactivates the necessary components of the inventive apparatus to producethe desired results. The AUTOMATIC mode is the preferred mode and isautomatically selected when the engine is started unless another mode isselected by the occupant. When the vehicle engine is turned off andrestarted the ACU will return to the AUTOMATIC mode on the ACU andautomatically begin to regulate the cabin environmental conditions theto meet the values on the cabin environmental profile which is selectedeach time the engine is started. Using the appropriate environmentalprofile the ACU establishes and regulates independently the:temperature, humidity, and fan speed for the front left, front right,and back seat. The ACU automatically and independently activates ordeactivates the defrost/defog air stream and automatically regulates thetemperature of the defrost/defog air stream. An alternative to theinventive apparatus for over the road trucks may replace the back seatfunction with a sleeper compartment function providing a split controlunit which may also be operated from the truck sleeper compartment. Theoccupant of the vehicle may override one or more functions of 1 theAUTOMATIC mode while the ACU remains in 1 the AUTOMATIC mode, byselecting for example, the 2 TEMPERATURE and 7 OFF which will cause theACU to continue to regulate the relative humidity and fan speed but willactivate or deactivate the necessary components to discontinue eitheradding heat or air-conditioning to the air stream, or the occupant mayleave the temperature in 1 the AUTOMATIC mode and turn off the relativehumidity function by selecting 3 HUMIDITY and 9 OFF which willdiscontinue the humidification or dehumidification process while thetemperature and fan speed are automatically regulated by the ACU. Theoccupant of the vehicle may change the environmental profile preset bythe factory by selecting 4 the SET and 10 ON then the environmentalprofile may be changed by selecting the 14 TEMPERATURE or 15 HUMIDITYwhile the ACU is in the AUTOMATIC mode either the profile temperature orthe profile humidity may be 20 INCREASED or 21 DECREASED, 22 INCREASEDor 41 DECREASED respectively which will modify the profile to the newvalues until they are changed by the same procedure or the profile maybe returned to the factory values by selecting 5 RESET.

In all preferred modes the ACU automatically regulates the defrost/defogfeatures to prevent the formation of condensation and/or will eliminateany condensation on the windshield automatically under any mode. The ACUwill over ride any manual or profile settings to assure the preventionand elimination of condensation on the windshield with the exception ofthe defog switch which will manually deactivate the defog feature duringonly one engine start up and run cycle or until the defog switch isagain selected, then the defog feature will be restored. When theoccupant selects 23 MANUAL SETTINGS the ACU discontinues to utilize theenvironmental profile feature of the inventive apparatus and willautomatically control the components of the apparatus to regulate thetemperature and relative humidity to the values which appear on thecontrol unit. The occupant may change the temperature by selecting 24TEMPERATURE and the 30 INCREASE or 31 DECREASE which will cause the ACUto function similar to a conventional thermostat and regulate theapparatus to the values selected by the occupant. The occupant mayselect 25 HUMIDITY to increase or decrease the relative humidity settingfor the ACU by selecting 32 INCREASE or 33 DECREASE after which the ACUwill regulate the relative humidity of the cabin to the percent which isset by the occupant on the ACU. The fan speed may be set by the occupantindependently from the automatic feature of the ACU when the fan controlis selected and the speed is set by the occupant after which the speedwill remain at the setting selected. When the occupant selects 34 MANUALOPERATION mode the ACU displays “HIGH”, “MEDIUM”, or “LOW” in place ofthe ACTUAL or SET numeric values on the face of the ACU, then when 35TEMPERATURE is selected the occupant can adjust the temperature toeither HIGH, MEDIUM OR LOW by then selecting 41 INCREASE or 42 DECREASE.and the ACU will provide unregulated output at the level indicated inthe display until another setting is selected by the occupant or theengine is stopped. The 36 HUMIDITY selection functions in a similar way,where 43 INCREASE may be selected to change a MEDIUM output of humidityto HIGH or a MEDIUM output to LOW by selecting 44 DECREASE.

FIG. 91 is a chart showing a list of the elements of the AutomaticControl Unit (ACU) functions. When the ACU is in the AUTOMATIC mode theoccupant may start and operate the vehicle in comfort and safety withoutever taking any action to control the environmental conditions of thecabin.

TEMPERATURE: The inventive apparatus senses the outside air temperatureand relative humidity which may indicate the type of clothing theoccupant is wearing with respect to warmth, and the current physicalcondition of the occupant's body temperature with respect to weather thebody is cold trying to warm up or hot trying to cool off. The apparatusselects one of several cabin environmental profiles depending on theoutside conditions and regulates the temperature to a time/temperatureprofile which offers temperature comfort for the occupant which may notremain at a fixed level but vary over the elapsed time after enginestart up when the outside air temperature is within a particular range.

HUMIDITY: The inventive apparatus is capable of sensing the level ofrelative humidity in the cabin and automatically setting the humiditycomponent to the most desired level of relative humidity for the cabinat a given elapsed time after which the ACU will continuously regulatethe relative humidity by either increasing or decreasing the level ofrelative humidity of the cabin to provide comfort for the occupantswhile the ventilation is set to either fresh outside air or recirculatedcabin air. In hot weather when the vehicle is initially started andbefore the air-conditioner has lowered the cabin temperature to thedesired level the ACU senses the cabin air temperature spread betweenthe desired and actual temperature and activates the dehumidificationfunction to utilize it's maximum capability to lower the relativehumidity which will assist the air-conditioner and accelerate theoccupant's cooling. As time passes the ACU may change the setting forthe level of relative humidity to prevent the occupant from feeling toodry.

DEFROST: The ACU automatically prevents or eliminates condensation(frost or fog) from the inside surface of the windshield and monitorsthe outside & inside environmental conditions to automatically add heatto the dehumidified air stream of the defrost vent to accelerate theremoval of inside condensation and/or melt any outside snow, frost orice which may contact the outside surface of the windshield. The ACU mayadd heat to the defog/defrost vent to provide clear visibility throughthe windshield and at the same time provide cabin ventilation withoutheat. When the ACU sensors indicate that the cabin relative humidity isapproaching a level which may cause condensation in conjunction with thewindshield glass temperature, the ACU automatically activates thedefrost function of the apparatus to prevent the formation ofcondensation. The ACU will override the humidification mode of theapparatus to limit the humidification to a level which will not causecondensation to build up on the windshield even if the occupant attemptsto set the relative humidity at level which would cause condensation onthe windshield.

FAN SPEED: In the AUTOMATIC mode the fan speed may be one of theelements of the environmental profile. The fan speed may be regulatedautomatically by the ACU and when the vehicle is started in hot weatherthe air-conditioning cooling, dehumidification, and fan speed willautomatically start to operate at maximum; and as the cabin and occupantcool down the fan speed will automatically be reduced by theenvironmental profile element of the ACU when the cabin air relativehumidity and temperature reach the desired level. When the vehicle isstarted in cold weather the cabin fan will not be activated until thereis sufficient engine heat to deliver a hot air stream to the cabin,however the dehumidification feature may be activated to direct adehumidified air stream to the defrost vent only by the fan to eliminateinside windshield condensation. The residual regeneration function wouldhave prepared the desiccant after the last engine shut down and isolatedthe anhydrous desiccant within the case to enable immediate windshielddefrosting. After engine start up when the ACU sensors indicate thatthere is sufficient engine heat available to deliver to the cabin theACU will automatically activate the fan to deliver the heated air streamat a level determined by the environmental profile. As the elapsed timeprogresses the ACU will either decrease or increase the fan speed tomeet the desired level set in the profile. If the occupant desires tooverride the AUTOMATIC mode of the fan and let the temperature andhumidity remain in the AUTOMATIC mode the ACU display has a fan speedselection which conveniently allows the occupant to override theautomatic level. The fan level may remain where the occupant set the fanwhile the AUTOMATIC mode continues to follow the profile for the otherfunctions. VENT SELECTION—(FEET, MID-LEVEL, HEAD, ETC.): The ventilationmaybe provided through various levels in the cabin and with differentselections for each side of the vehicle which allows the occupant on theright side to direct the air stream to the mid-level while the occupantin the left side may direct the air stream to their feet or anycombination of vent levels. In the AUTOMATIC mode the ACU sensors willprovide information to the ACU which will determine which vents areutilized to deliver the desired air stream to the cabin. The face of theACU offers the occupant various selections for the vent when the mode isset to MANUAL SETTINGS, or MANUAL OPERATION.

FRESH/RECIRCULATE AIR SUPPLY: The face of the ACU provides the occupantwith the capability to select fresh outside air which may be conditionedand delivered to the cabin or recirculated cabin air may be selected.When either fresh or recirculated cabin air is selected the ACUactivates the necessary air valves (damper doors) and other componentsto deliver the air stream from the desired air source. The AUTOMATICmode makes no attempt to automatically set the air source for the cabinsince the decision of fresh air or recirculated cabin air is made by theoccupant and remains at the selected source until changed by theoccupant.

FIG. 92 is a two part chart showing an example of an environmental ACUprofile for the automatic control of the settings of cabin temperaturethermostat and fan speed settings. The profile is automatically selectedby the ACU from a group of previously established profiles for givenoutside air temperature ranges. The ACU selects a profile by receivinginput from outside air temperature sensors then matches the outside airsensor reading to the relevant temperature range for a profile. In thetop portion of the chart the temperature only is shown where the outsideair temperature sensors indicated the temperature of the outside airwhen the vehicle started was within a range of 75° F. to 85° F. whichcaused the ACU to select the profile shown. In this chart, with theoutside temperature above the normal comfort level for a human, theprofile is designed to start with a cold thermostat setting when thevehicle is first started and then as the elapsed time passes afterengine start up, the setting for the thermostat may be adjustedautomatically as the ACU reads the profile which may increase thethermostat's temperature setting. In this chart which is showing thetemperature setting for the thermostat increasing as time passes, theinitial cold temperature setting which would cool down the vehicle andoccupant, is then increase so the occupant does not feel chilled by thecold air after the occupant's body metabolism rate is lower and the hotweather clothing offers less warmth. The environmental profile method isdesigned to set the inside temperature at various levels over apredetermined time span. After the initial cool down for a hot weatherprofile the thermostat stabilizes at a warmer temperature than would beused for a cold weather since the occupant would be wearing lighterweight clothing in hot weather; and when the outside air temperature iscold the profile would be designed to warm up the vehicle and occupantand then be adjusted along a different and lower profile as time passessince the occupant would be wearing warmer clothing in cold weather.

This method is an improvement over previous thermostats where theoccupant must reset the conventional thermostat while operating thevehicle either to lower the temperature level when they first start thevehicle in hot weather for the initial cool down or if the temperatureon the thermostat is low enough for initial cool down in hot weather,the occupant must increase the temperature setting as time passes tofeel comfortable since the initial temperature which previously feltcomfortable would begin to feel cold over time. The actual temperatureis shown in the chart first decreasing as the air-conditioning coolingbegins to lower the temperature of the cabin. The profile is designednot only to allow for vehicle cabin cool down to the thermostat settingtemperature, but also the occupant's body metabolism rate to decrease toa level which would require less cooling. An alternative to theinventive apparatus would provide a visual display of the profileshowing the selected profile on a liquid crystal display, CRT, or otherdisplay method on the instrument panel next to the ACU controls. Thelower portion of the chart shows an example of a ACU profile for a rangeof 75° F. to 85° F. where the temperature and fan speed may be regulatedin a method similar to the profile in the top portion of the chart. Inthe lower profile the fan starts when the vehicle is started in themaximum setting and as the occupant 's body cools down the fan speed isautomatically regulated to provide the most comfortable cabinenvironment to the occupant without the need for the occupant to makemanual control adjustments. Various profile may be established fordifferent sizes and types of vehicles where the cool down times andcabin environmental characteristics may vary for different vehicles. Theenvironmental profile inventive method not only utilizes the traditionalthermostat to regulate the temperature, but also adjust the thermostattemperature setting and fan speed settings based on the elapsed time thevehicle has been operating and is not related to the time of day. TheACU automatically selects an environmental profile from a group ofvarious profiles each of which is designed for a range of outside airtemperatures and will regulate the thermostat settings and fan speedsettings which may both vary independently over the elapsed time thevehicle has operated since it started.

FIG. 93 is an example of a two part chart showing an environmental ACUprofile for the control of cabin air temperature, relative humidity andfan speed which is automatically selected by the ACU based ontemperature sensor input to the ACU of the outside air temperature.Another alternative of the inventive apparatus which may utilize aprofile method for an ACU with a relative humidity sensor input inaddition to temperature to select a particular environmental profilewhich may be based on outside temperature and the outside air relativehumidity, an example of this type of profile is not shown. For thischart, the top portion shows a relative humidity profile which wasselected by the ACU is based on outside air temperature sensor input tothe ACU after which the ACU selects the appropriate relative humidityprofile which is identified as the humidity setting line representingthe desired % of relative humidity for the vehicle cabin at a particulartime along the profile. The profile provides the ACU with the desiredrelative humidity which will be set in the humidity and may change therelative humidity setting as time passes. The example shown for anoutside air temperature of 75° F. to 85° F. would lower the relativehumidity when the engine is started to assist the air-conditionerefficiency in cooling the vehicle and provide a low relative humidity toaccelerate the evaporation of human perspiration which may be present onthe clothing when an individual enters the vehicle. As time passes the %of relative humidity may be regulated at different levels based on theelapsed time along the profile. The lower portion of the chart shows thetemperature and fan speed profiles combined with the humidity profile toregulate the ACU which are similar to the temperature and fan speedprofiles previously shown in FIG. 92. One alternative to the timeoriented profile is a profile which has actual condition readingsestablishing the starting point for previously established timesegments. In this example, when the environmental conditioning systemshould have reduced the temperature of the cabin to 70° F. & 50% R.H. in12 minutes and then made a setting adjustment, however, the actualreadings of the sensors may indicate that with maximum cooling of theair-conditioner and maximum dehumidification of the desiccant system theresulted in a cabin were only a temperature of 78° F. & 75% R.H., thealternative logic would cause the ACU to recognize the difference in theactual conditions and desired conditions and would then delay the changeof temperature, relative humidity, and fan speed setting until thedesired actual conditions are reached. The ACU, in this example,considers time and actual conditions before the settings for the cabinare automatically adjusted. An environmental profile is event relatedwhere the time line starts with an event and is not controlled by thetime of day. An event which would cause the ACU to start utilizing theprofile may be the starting of the vehicle engine or in otherapplications a motion detector may detect the entry of an individualinto the cabin or a room or building. In summary, when activated the ACUwould receive sensor inputs and based on the readings select apredetermined environmental profile for the range of outside conditionwhich would be automatically selected. In the case of a vehicle, thestart of electrical power to the ACU may be the signal of the event ofstarting the vehicle which would place the ACU at the beginning of theprofile's time line, after which the ACU would utilize the values on theprofile to set the thermostat, humidity, fan speed or other parametersof the environmental control system. A profile may have intermediateevents to start another segment of the profile, such as the desiredtemperature on the thermostat having the same temperature reading as thesensor reading of actual cabin temperature for a particular temperaturesensor which would allow the ACU to move to the next segment of theprofile. Another alternative of the ACU profile may be for a buildingwhere certain events from the building security system (motiondetectors) which would cause the ACU to evaluate the outsideenvironmental conditions, select a profile, then set the thermostat,humidity, and other environmental control apparatus which in turn wouldactivate the apparatus to deliver the desired conditions (heating,cooling, humidification, dehumidification, fan speed, or may eveninclude the lighting.

FIG. 94 is a diagram showing the ACU in the AUTOMATIC mode with sensors,control units, and components of the apparatus automatically operated bythe ACU. The control function which may be separated into sections suchas CONTROL “A” for cabin ventilation and CONTROL “B” for defrost/defogfunctions with the capability of the CONTROL “B” to override the CONTROL“A” functions of the cabin ventilation to always prevent or eliminatethe formation of condensation on the inside windshield glass. Item 1represents one or more outside air temperature sensors which inputtemperature information to the ACU. Item 2. represents one or moreoutside air humidity sensors which input relative humidity informationto the ACU. Additional temperature and relative humidity sensors may beutilized to monitor the internal operation of the apparatus, an exampleof which are the sensors utilized to monitor the level of moisturesaturation and evaporation of the desiccant canisters for the ACU toactivate the cycle change for the rotary crossover valves to improve theefficiency of the apparatus. Item 3 represents one or more front seattemperature sensor. One alternative to the inventive apparatus may havea separate ACU function with independent environmental conditioningcapability for each front seat. Item 4 represents one or more back seattemperature sensors. Item 5 represents one or more front seat relativehumidity sensors, and Item 6 represents one or more back seat relativehumidity sensors. The CONTROL “A” section of the ACU receives the inputfrom the sensors and compares the sensor readings to match the readingsto a predetermined set of possible input ranges which have anestablished set of output responses. The output responses by the ACU'sCONTROL “A” section may activate various components of the apparatussuch as the BEAT, VENTILATION, AIR-CONDITIONING AND HUMIDITY components.The windshield defog/defrost functions are performed by the CONTROL “B”section of the ACU by receiving input from: Item 7 which represents oneor more temperature sensors for the outside of the windshield glass,Item 8 which represents one or more temperature sensors for the insideof the windshield glass, Item 9 which represents one or more humiditysensors for the air near the surface of the inside windshield glass, andadditional relative humidity sensors for the outside air near thesurface of the windshield glass may be utilized which are not shown. TheCONTROL “B” function automatically activates the components of theapparatus which defogs/defrosts the windshield when the sensor inputsindicate that the conditions have reached or are approaching a level ofenvironmental conditions which could cause condensation to form on theinside surface of the windshield glass or external conditions require aheated air stream to melt or evaporate condensation on the outsidesurface of the windshield. The automatic environmental profile featureis a component of the CONTROL “A” section of the ACU.

FIG. 95 is a drawing of the front of the control unit for an alternativeof the ACU which does not have the automatic “Profile” feature and showsthe information which may be displayed to the occupant of the motorizedvehicle and the controls which may be selected by the occupant set theACU to the desired environmental output. Item 1 the fan on/off powerselection press to select switch which also indicates if the fan is onor off by an indicator light located behind the face of the switch whichilluminates through the switch when the fan is on and off when the fanis off. Item 2 (−) is a fan speed switch to reduce the fan speed onelevel each time it is selected until the fan speed is set to the lowestlevel. Item 3 (+) is a fan speed switch to increase the fan speed onelevel each time it is selected until the fan speed is set to the highestlevel. Item 4 is a vent position selector switch which when selectedilluminates and causes the ACU to direct the air stream to high level(windshield level), middle level, and feet when the fan power is in onposition. Item 5 is a vent position selector switch which when selectedilluminates and causes the ACU to direct the air stream to high level(the vents which deliver air to the upper portion of the cabin) when thefan power is in on position. Item 6 is a selector switch which whenpressed will illuminate and cause the ACU to use outside air as thesource of air for the cabin environmental system. Item 7 is the cabinthermostat setting indicator display which will illuminate to displaythe temperature setting for the thermostat when Item 10 the temperaturepower is activated by the occupant by selecting “ON”. Item 8 (−) is thedecrease thermostat setting selector switch, which when pressed willdecrease the temperature setting for the thermostat. Item 9 (+) is theincrease thermostat setting selector switch, which when pressed willincrease the temperature setting for the thermostat. The ACUautomatically selects and activates the air-conditioning cooling systemor the heating system when the cabin temperature sensors indicate thatthe cabin temperature is above or below the desired temperature range,if Item 10 the temperature system power is in the “on” position. Item 10is the power “ON”/“OFF” switch for the ACU temperature system toactivate either cooling or heating which enables the ACU toautomatically activate the components which will regulate the cabintemperature to the desired level which is displayed on Item 7. When Item10 is in the “ON” position a light will illuminate the switch toindicate that the power is “ON”. When Item 10 power is “OFF” the fan maycontinue to operate to deliver air to the cabin which is not conditionedwith heating or cooling. Item 11 is the cabin air stream vent which whenselected will direct air to the high level (windshield vent) and towardthe feet of the occupant of the front seat. Item 12 directs the airstream toward the middle level and the feet. Item 13 directs the airstream toward the occupant's feet. Item 14 directs the air toward themiddle level. When the occupant selects Item 15, the source of air forthe cabin environmental system will be from the cabin, which will causethe ACU to recirculate cabin air and illuminate an indicator lightbehind the switch. Item 16 is the indicator for the relative humiditysetting in the humidistat and is illuminated when the power to thehumidity has been turned on by the occupant when Item 19 is selected.Item 17 (+) is the increase humidity setting selector switch, which whenpressed will increase the relative humidity setting for the humidity.Item 18 (−) is the decrease humidity setting selector switch, which whenpressed will decrease the relative humidity setting for the humidistat.The ACU automatically selects and activates the components of thehumidification and dehumidification system when the cabin relativehumidity sensors indicate that the cabin relative humidity is above orbelow the desired relative humidity range, if Item 19 the relativehumidity system power is in the “on” position. Item 19 is the power“ON”/“OFF” switch for the ACU relative humidity system to activateeither humidification or dehumidification which enables the ACU toautomatically activate the components which will regulate the cabinrelative humidity to the desired level which is displayed on Item 16.When Item 19 is in the “ON” position a light will illuminate the switchto indicate that the power is “ON”. When Item 19 power is “OFF” the fanmay continue to operate to deliver air to the cabin which is notconditioned by the addition or removal of humidity. In this figure amanual setting type of ACU is shown for a motorized land vehicle whichmay be similar to the ACU for an aircraft or water vehicles and whichcontrols the activation or deactivation or the components of theapparatus to regulate the cabin environmental temperature and desiccantbased relative humidity with fresh or recirculated air.

FIG. 96A is a drawing of the full function automatic digital controlunit with modes and functions shown on the face of the ACU andinformation blocks to the side of the ACU. When the “AUTO” automaticmode is selected the ACU automatically regulates the settings on thesystem thermostat, humidistat, and fan to provide superior comfort andeliminate the need for the occupant to make environmental systemadjustments during the time the individual occupies the vehicle. Thefunctions 1 through 5 setting are automatically established andregulated by the ACU. The decision to utilize fresh or recirculatedcabin air may be set by the occupant to remain in one position until theoccupant desires that the setting be changed. An “ON”/“OFF” switch isprovided for the occupant to override the ACU and turn the system offwhen the sensors indicate that the cabin needs environmentalconditioning, but the occupant wants the system turned off The automaticfunction for the front and back seat may be independently overridden bythe occupant of the vehicle.

FIG. 96B is a drawing of the face of a full function ACU showing the“ACTUAL” readings Items 19 & 13 of the cabin temperature and relativehumidity sensors displayed. Item 1 is the mode selection switch for thefull automatic function of the ACU where the settings for functions 1through 5 are automatically established and then regulated by the ACU.When the vehicle is started the ACU will automatically start to operatein the full automatic mode which is controlled by environmental profilesunless a particular element of the automatic profile was previouslymodified and set prior to engine shut down; in this case, the modifiedprofile for the temperature, humidity, or fan speed in use when theengine was shut down is saved and reused for the next engine start upand run cycle. Item 2 is the “SET” mode selection switch where in thismode the occupant establishes the settings for the thermostat,humidistat, fan speed and vent selection. When Item 2 “SET” mode isselected by the occupant the current system settings may be changed byselecting Item 15 the “set range selector” which will cause the displayto change the “temperature window” Item 19 from displaying actual sensorreadings of the cabin air temperature to a display of the currentsetting on the thermostat and allow the occupant to change thethermostat setting by selecting Item 18 or Item 3 which will eitherincrease or decrease the temperature setting on the thermostat andprovide the indication in the “temperature window” showing “SET”followed by the display of the numeric reading of the thermostat similarto Item 19 of FIG. 96B. For relative humidity regulation, when Item 15the “SET” switch is selected, the humidistat may also be changed byselecting Item 14 to increase the relative humidity level or Item 12 todecrease the relativity level. When ACU mode of operation is changed tomanual Item 4 “MANUAL” is selected which causes the ACU to allows theoccupant to directly control the output of the apparatus by selecting“HIGH”, “MEDIUM”, or “LOW” output. In the MANUAL mode which is not shownthe “temperature window” and the “humidity window” the display Item 19words “SET” or “ACTUAL” are replaced by “HEAT” or “COOL” for the“temperature window” or for the “humidity window” Item 13 will become“MDIFY” or “DEHUMIDIFY” followed by “HIGH”, “MEDIUM”, or “LOW”. Theoccupant may then change the temperature output by pressing the Item 18switch to increase the temperature of the air stream or Item 3 todecrease the temperature of the air stream with a range of 6 (six)temperature positions, starting with the highest temperature which is“HEAT” with the word “HIGH” in the lower portion of the “temperaturewindow” and the lowest temperature output displayed as “COOL” followedby the word “LOW” in the lower portion of the “temperature window. Thetemperature listed below with 1. as the highest temperature output and6. the lowest temperature output:

1. “HEAT” 4. “COOL” “HIGH” “HIGH” 2. “HEAT” 5. “COOL” “MEDIUM” “MEDIUM”3. “HEAT” 6. “COOL” “LOW” “LOW”

The occupant may change the relative humidity if the air stream going tothe cabin using a method similar to the one described above for thetemperature, where 1. is the highest relative humidity output and 6. isthe lowest relative humidity output:

1. “HUMIDIFY” 4. “DEHUMIDIFY” “HIGH” “HIGH” 2. “HUMIDIFY” 5.“DEHUMIDIFY” “MEDIUM” “MEDIUM” 3. “HUMIDIFY” 6. “DEHUMIDIFY” “LOW” “LOW”

Item 5. the “ON”/“OFF” switch is a manual override to the automaticfunction of the ACU to turn the system off or after the system is offthe system may be turned back on by pressing the switch again. Item 6 isa switch to allow the operator to select fresh outside air for the cabinor by pressing the switch again return to a cabin air source which willrecirculate cabin air through the inventive apparatus back into thecabin. When the switch is in the fresh outside air position the switchis illuminated. Item 7 the “OFF” switch. The ACU automatically activatesthe defrost/defog function when ever the environmental conditions areapproaching the temperature and relative humidity levels which wouldallow the formation of condensation on the windshield. When the DEFOGfunction is activated by the ACU the DEFOG switch is illuminated. Theoccupant may override the ACU and turn off the defog function and theswitch light by selecting the DEFOG switch. The DEFOG switch position isnot saved in memory after the engine is shut off. Each time the engineis started the ACU automatically reactivates the DEFOG function and willstart defrosting the windshield when necessary unless the DEFOG is againoverridden to the off position by the occupant. Item 8 is the ventselection switch which will allow the occupant to override the AUTOMATICmode of the ACU vent selection. The vent selection switch is alsoavailable to the occupant to select the desired vent when the ACU is inthe MANUAL SETTING or the MANUAL OPERATION mode. The occupant may selectone or more vents by pressing the desired vent level switch. Item 9 isthe FAN speed selection display which allows the occupant to overridethe AUTOMATIC mode of the ACU and chose a fan speed which may rangefrom 1. “H” (high) to 5. “L” (low). The occupant may use the fan speedselection switch to chose the fan speed when the ACU is in the MANUALSETTING or the MANUAL OPERATION mode. Item 10 “B” is the back seatselection switch for the ACU (or sleeper compartment for an over theroad truck) and when selected the ACU displays of the functions of thecontrol panel may operate some or all of the functions of the back seatwith features which are similar to those of the front seat. Item 16 “F”is the front seat selection switch which when selected will return theACU display to the operation of the front seat. Item 11 is a RESETswitch for the ACU which when selected will return the ACU to thefactory established environmental profile. The RESET switch may beselected at any time to return all elements of the profile to theoriginal factory profile settings when the occupant no longer wants toutilize a modified profile.

FIG. 96C is a drawing of the face of a full function ACU similar toFIGS. 96A and 96B showing the “SET” readings Items 19 the thermostat &13 humidistat for the cabin temperature and relative humidity. When Item15 is selected by the occupant the word “SET” replaces “ACTUAL” in bothItem 19 & 13 and the occupant may change the settings by selecting Item18 or 3 and Item 14 or 12.

FIG. 96D is a drawing of the face of a full function ACU similar toFIGS. 96A, 96B & 96C which has an additional feature to allow theoccupant to independently control both the front left and front rightseat environmental controls. Item 9 “L” is the selection switch for theLEFT seat which will cause the display for the ACU to operate theportion of the ACU controlling the LEFT seat, and Item 10 “R” is theselection switch for the RIGHT seat which will cause the display for theACU to operated the portion of the ACU controlling the LEFT seat.

FIG. 97A is a drawing of a duel canister cabin desiccant apparatusutilizing duel crossover valves similar to the embodiment shown in FIG.136 with the addition of a heat exchanger Item 3 which may be utilizedin conjunction with Item 16 the pre-cooler heat exchanger. A coolantfluid may be circulated between the two heat exchangers to transfer thefrom the air stream passing through heat exchanger Item 16 into the airstream passing through heat exchanger Item 3. A door is shown which maybe closed to prevent the air stream Item 1 from passing through the heatexchanger 3 when the pre-cooler is deactivated. When the door is closedthe air stream will be directed to heat exchanger to provide for maximumheating of air stream Item I when it is performing evaporation ofmoisture out of the desiccant. Items 5 & 15 may be rotary crossovervalves to alternate the air streams Items 1 & 2 between the desiccantcanisters Items 7 & 13. The air valves Items 5 & 15 may be rotary,slide, or damper valves to accomplish the crossover.

FIG. 97B is a drawing of a FOUR (4) canister cabin desiccant apparatusutilizing duel crossover valves which is similar to FIG. 97A with 4canisters in place of the 2 canisters. The four (4) canister alternativeembodiment allows the air flow to pass uninterrupted through theapparatus because as 5 the crossover valve is switching the air streamfrom canister Item 3 to canister Item 4 the air stream continues to flowuninterrupted through the other two canisters, Items 1 & 2 as shown inDETAIL: C. Item 5 is the input crossover valve and Item 6 is the outputvalve. The valves may be rotary, slide or damper type valves which havethe capability to switch two air streams while allowing two other airstreams to continue to flow. The hot air streams cause the moisture toevaporate out of the desiccant while the cool air streams provides themoisture which is adsorbed into the desiccant contained in the canistercase.

FIG. 98 is a schematic view of a duel canister, duel rotary crossovervalve cabin desiccant apparatus utilizing after process cooler/heatercoils to further condition the air going to the cabin. This alternativeof the apparatus is similar to the one shown in FIGS. 97A and 97B withthe addition of a heat exchanger Item 17 and air stream 19 exiting theapparatus to the atmosphere.

FIG. 99 is a schematic view of a FOUR (4) canister, duel rotarycrossover valve cabin desiccant apparatus utilizing after processcooler/heater coils to further condition the air going to the cabinwhich is similar to FIG. 97B. The valves are similar to those shown inDETAIL: C of FIG. 97B.

FIG. 100 is a schematic view of a duel canister, duel rotary crossovervalve cabin desiccant apparatus similar to the one shown in FIG. 98 withstraight through air flow canisters. This alternative of the apparatusallows the air stream to pass straight through the canister withoutgoing around the baffles shown in FIG. 98. The honeycomb Items 6, 8, 12,& 14 are wedge shaped and positioned on the top and bottom of the mainsections of honeycomb Items 7 & 13 with an air space between thesections of honeycomb. The canister shape and the shape of the honeycombsections provide an even distribution of the air stream through thehoneycomb. The elimination of the baffles and this arrangement of thehoneycomb offers less resistance to the air flow through the apparatusthan a baffle canister. This is another example of how the inventivemethod may utilize various types and shapes of canisters or wheels andvarious types of valves to direct the air flow through a desiccantcoated material to perform the desired results.

FIG. 101 is a drawing of a desiccant based defroster apparatus for alarge freezer box or refrigeration unit for a truck or other motorizedvehicle, or a freezer box or refrigeration unit located in a commercialbuilding which utilizes the apparatus to eliminates frost and reducesthe energy consumption by lowering the relative humidity of the aircontained in the box. The inventive apparatus utilizes the excess heatfrom the compressor and condenser coils to evaporate the moisture out ofthe hydrous desiccant. Item 1 is the freezer box/cooler which could beused as: a display case in a food store, cold storage box, trailer foran over the road truck, refrigerator for home use, or various othercooler or freezer boxes which may be opened at different times andexposed to another air source which is at a higher temperature andcontaining moisture. The apparatus dehumidifies the air stream toeliminate frost and reduce the energy consumption of the unit. Thewarmer air exposed to the cooler/freezer box has the ability to holdit's moisture until it is cooled and then the moisture in the warmer airbegins to condense out as the temperature is lowered causing frost toform on the inside of the box and especially on the cold evaporatorcoils. Two separate air streams are represented in the drawing byarrows. The cold air 3 exits the box through 2 a filter and passesthrough 4-A the adsorption side of the desiccant wheel where theanhydrous desiccant adsorbs the moisture out of the air stream. Item 5is the dehumidified cold air stream which is pull into 6 the cold airfan which is powered by fan motor 9. The air stream then enters 7 thecold evaporator coils which lower the temperature of the air returningto the freezer. Since the moisture is removed out of the air streambefore it passes through the cold evaporator coils condensation (frost)will not form on the coils as the air passes through the coils. When thecold dehumidified air stream enters the box with it's very low relativehumidity it will defrost the box through sublimation. The other airstream 11 may pass over the hot exterior of 8 the compressor and hoses(not shown) either before or after the air stream is filtered by 12 thehot air stream filter. Fan 13 which may be powered by 9 the fan motorforces the air stream through 16 the condenser coils which arepositioned between 13 the fan and 4-E the evaporation side of the slowlyrotating desiccant wheel. The hot air stream 14 is shown exiting 16 thehot condenser coils at a temperature high enough to evaporate themoisture out of the hydrous desiccant portion of the wheel. The hotmoist air stream exits the apparatus into 15 the atmosphere. TitaniumSilica, produced by Engelhard Corporation, will allow it's moisture toevaporate off when the air stream temperature passing over the surfaceof the desiccant is as low as 140° F., and will adsorb moisture attemperatures room temperature or lower. The desiccant wheel may be acenter torque drive honeycomb wheel and is shown with a torque motor 10and reduction gear box connected to the wheel by a drive shaft. Theautomatic control unit, sensors, seals, wiring, and other components arenot shown.

FIG. 102 is a drawing of a desiccant based defroster apparatus for alarge freezer box or refrigeration unit for a truck or commercialbuilding which eliminates frost and reduces the energy consumption bylowering the relative humidity of the air contained in the box similarto FIG. 101 with a different embodiment of the fans, motor and wheelarrangement. The fans in this drawing are shown arranged so that any airleakage past the air seals will not enter the box since the air pressureon the cold side of the wheel will be greater than the air pressure onthe hot side of the wheel. As in FIG. 101 the cold air 1 in the boxcirculates out through 2 the air filter and passes through 4 the coldside fan which forces the air stream through 5-A the adsorption portionof the desiccant wheel where the anhydrous desiccant adsorbs themoisture out of the air stream. The position of 4 the cold air fan whichis forcing the air into the wheel causes a higher air pressure withinthe cold air mass near the wheel than the hot air in the lower portionof the drawing which is pulled through the wheel by 14 the hot air fan.When the cold dehumidified air stream exits the wheel it then passesthrough 7 the cold evaporator coils which lower the temperature of thedehumidified air stream. In this alternative of the inventive apparatusa single motor Item 10 is shown providing power to both fans 4 & 14 andthrough a reduction gear box Item 9 torque is also provided to theslowly rotating desiccant wheel. Item 8 is a conventional compressorwhich may be used as a source of excess heat for evaporation in additionto the normal function of refrigeration. Item 17 is a filter to preventforeign matter from building up on the surface of the desiccant wheel as11 the outside air enters the apparatus. The outside air stream passesthrough 16 the hot condenser coils which increases the temperature ofthe air stream to the level necessary to evaporate the moisture out of5-E the evaporation side of the desiccant wheel. Air stream 12 is thehot air stream entering the hydrous portion of the desiccant wheel wherethe moisture is released from the desiccant into the hot air stream andexits the wheel as hot moist air Item 13. Fan 14 pulls the hot airstream through the apparatus and expels the hot moist air 15 back intothe atmosphere.

FIG. 103 is a drawing of a desiccant based defroster apparatus for alarge freezer box or refrigeration unit for a truck or commercialbuilding which eliminates frost and reduces the energy consumption bylowering the relative humidity of the air contained in the box similarto FIG. 101 and FIG. 102 with a different embodiment of the fans, motorand wheel arrangement. This drawing is similar to FIG. 102 with theexception that there are two motors 9 & 10 in place of one motor 10. Inthis drawing Item 9 is the torque motor and reduction gear box for thedesiccant wheel and Item 10 is the fan motor for fans 4 & 14. Analternative to FIG. 101 & 102 is Item 18 an auxiliary heat exchangerwhich may be added to the apparatus and is capable of providing the heatrequired for evaporation when 8 the compressor is off anddehumidification is desired. The auxiliary heat exchanger 18 would onlyneed to provide the heat for the regeneration of the desiccant only whenthe compressor is off When the compressor 8 is operating the heat forregeneration would be provided by 16 the condenser coils.

FIG. 104A is a drawing of a (4) four canister desiccant case withstraight through air flow in the canisters where the air flow does notmake directional changes due to baffles. The input end is shown with therotary crossover valve removed to the lower right. The hot air streamenters canister “A” and exits the output end “E”, while canisters “B” &“D” are making their cycle change (“B” from hot to cool air & “D” fromcool to hot air) and while canister “C” has a cool air stream enteringthe “C” input end and exiting “G” the output end. In this way the “A” &“C” air stream is uninterrupted during the change over of “B” & “D”. Ascanister “A” begins to have it's moisture completely evaporate out intothe hot air stream and become anhydrous, canister “C” becomes saturatedwith the moisture which is adsorbed into the desiccant from the cool airstream as it becomes hydrous, and the changeover of “A” & “C” isaccomplished by the crossover valve while the air continues to flowsthrough canisters “B” & “D”. The relative humidity sensors of theautomatic control unit detect the level of saturation and evaporationand activate the input and output crossover valves to accomplish thecrossover.

FIG. 104B is a drawing of the crossover valve moved forward and awayfrom the (4) four canister case to provide a view of the input end ofthe canisters which is similar to FIG. 104A.

FIG. 104C is a drawing of the rotary crossover valve which may beutilized for a (4) four canister desiccant case. In Detail “A” a portionof the rotary crossover valve is shown in the upper left with (2) twoair vents connected to the valve. Air stream “A” is shown entering thevalve opening in the top of the valve and making a 90° turn into thecanister as air stream “A1”. The rotary crossover valves differ from theaction of the slowly rotating desiccant wheel in that the crossovervalve makes a rapid valve change from one canister to another. Therotation action of the valve is shown with an arrow labeled “R”. Airstream “A” may be the hot air stream while air stream “B” may be thecool air stream and “B” is shown closed off from the canister. When thevalve rotates air stream “B” is allowed to flow through the opening inthe valve and air stream “A” will be closed off buy a section of thevalve not shown.

FIG. 105 is a drawing showing a slight off set of the output vent fromthat of the input vent to compensate for the rotation of the desiccantwheel and size of the cell openings. Although the rotation of thedesiccant wheel is very slow as compared to the velocity of the air flowthrough the wheel, for example, there may exist a condition where theadsorption air enters the input side through the cells (air passageways)and as the wheel rotates the air exits the output side of the wheel intothe evaporation air stream. The vent off set assures that the adsorptioninput side cell is completely closed before the output side of the samecell becomes open to the evaporation side vent. “A” represents the angleof the off set on both sides of the center of rotation and is shown as afunction of “R”=rotational speed, “S”=velocity of air flow, “W”=width ofwheel, and diameter of wheel. There are two additional factors not shownwhich are: (1) the thickness of the diagonal seal and (2) the size ofthe cells. The vent offset may help prevent the crossover of the airstream from the adsorption to evaporation side or from the evaporationto the adsorption side of the system.

FIG. 106. is a drawing of a desiccant based dehumidification apparatuswhere an alternative to the inventive method utilizing a desiccant wheelto dehumidify an air stream which will then enter an air compressor tobecome dehumidified compressed air. Item 1. the evaporation air streamenters the apparatus from atmosphere an passes through 3. the air filterto prevent the accumulation of foreign matter on the desiccant wheel.After most foreign matter is removed by 3. the air filter from 1. theevaporation air stream which then passes through 4. a heat exchangersupplied by excess heat from various sources such as the compressor,compressor motor or other sources the temperature of the evaporation airstream is increased to the temperature necessary to evaporate themoisture out of E. the desiccant material coated on the surface of 6.the desiccant wheel. The desiccant wheel slowly rotates through E. theevaporation section of the apparatus where the hot air stream exiting 4.the heat exchanger evaporates the moisture out of the desiccant materialand then returns to 8. the atmosphere with the water vapor. Item 2. thecompressor input air stream which will enter the compressor first passesthrough 5. an air filter to remove foreign matter before entering A theadsorption side of 6. the desiccant wheel. The desiccant coated on thesurface of the NOMEX honeycomb wheel adsorbs the moisture out of the airstream as the air passes through the wheel on it's way to 7. thecompressor intake. The wheel is slowly rotated causing the desiccantwhich is coated on the wheel to cycle into and out of the A. and E.positions of the apparatus. The rotation serves to allow the moisture tobe adsorbed into the desiccant in the A. position and then berepositioned to E. position where the moisture is evaporated. In thisway the desiccant continuously adsorbs moisture out of the input airstream and is regenerated by the evaporation of the moisture from thehot air stream. The heat exchanger Item 4. is shown with pipes/hoses 9.& 10. which are the input and output lines for the coolant from themotor or compressor utilized to transfer the heat from thecompressor/motor to the evaporation air stream. An alternative of heinventive apparatus, which is not shown, would eliminate the heatexchanger and utilize a small fan to pull an air stream from the motorand compressor to then force the hot air into the evaporation side ofthe wheel. Two of the benefits of the invention are: first, theincreased efficiency of the compressor due to the ability of thecompressor to produce greater compression when input air does notcontain water vapor and; secondly, the compressor, air tank, air lines,hoses, drive motors and other devices utilizing the air do not have tocope with the condensation which often forms within the air system. Manycompressed air systems today utilize various water filters or waterseparators which require constant maintenance efforts to prevent thebuild up of moisture in the compressed air system.

FIG. 107 is a drawing of a desiccant based air compressordehumidification apparatus which is similar to the apparatus shown inFIG. 106, except that the heat exchanger is removed and the heat forevaporation is provided from the air stream which cools the compressorand air cooled motor. Item 1 is the evaporation air stream which firstpasses through 3 the filter which removes any foreign particles afterwhich the air is heated as it passes over the outside surface of 11 themotor and 12 the compressor. The air stream is then forced through “E”the evaporation portion of 6 the slowly rotating desiccant wheel by 8the fan. Item 4 is the reduction gear box which may be powered by either11 the motor or have another motor, which is not shown, provide thepower to the reduction gear box. The output of 4 the reduction gear boxis a slowly rotating shaft to 6 the desiccant wheel and high RPM to 8the fan. Item 1 the evaporation air stream passes through 13 the airduct to the desiccant wheel at a high enough temperature to evaporatethe moisture out of the desiccant material coated on the wheel. Item 2the air stream which will go onto the compressor to be compressed, firstpasses through 5 the air filter to remove any foreign particles and thenenters “A” the adsorption portion of 6 the desiccant wheel where themoisture in the air stream is adsorbed into the desiccant material. Thedehumidified air stream passes through 14 the air duct to the aircompressor. Item 7 the dehumidified air stream is shown enter the intakeof the air compressor. Item 10 is the output of the air compressor whichis high pressure dehumidified air. Not shown is another alternative ofthe inventive apparatus which utilizes a set of desiccant canisters withcrossover valves which may replace the desiccant wheel.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of improving the efficiency of an airconditioning system for a compartment of a motorized vehicle,comprising: (a) providing a desiccant-based moisture collector; (b)dehumidifying a first air stream by directing the first air streamthrough the desiccant-based moisture collector, so that the first airstream becomes a dehumidified first air stream; (c) after step (b),pre-cooling the dehumidified first air stream! (d) after step (c),cooling the dehumidified and pre-cooled first air stream with the airconditioning system of the motorized vehicle, whereby less energy isrequired for the air conditioning system to cool the dehumidified firstair stream than would have been required to cool the first air streamprior to dehumidification; and (e) directing the dehumidified and cooledfirst air stream into the compartment of the motorized vehicle.
 2. Themethod of claim 1, wherein: in step (d), the cooling is performed in acooling device of a compressor based refrigeration air conditioningsystem.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein: the pre-cooling includestransferring heat from the dehumidified first air stream to a stream ofoutside ambient air.
 4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:regenerating the moisture collector by passing a hot air stream throughthe moisture collector and transferring moisture from the moisturecollector to the hot air stream.
 5. The method of claim 4, wherein: instep (a), the moisture collector comprises an enclosed canister; andfurther comprising directing the first air stream and the hot air streamthrough the moisture collector in an alternating manner.
 6. The methodof claim 4, further comprising: discharging the hot air stream to theatmosphere.
 7. The method of claim 1, wherein: in step (b), the firstair stream includes air from outside the compartment.
 8. The method ofclaim 1, wherein: in step (b), the first air stream includes air frominside the compartment.
 9. The method of claim 4, wherein: in theregenerating step, the hot air stream includes waste engine heat from anengine of the motorized vehicle.
 10. The method of claim 1, wherein: instep (a) the desiccant-based moisture collector includes a relativelythin layer of solid desiccant material on a honeycomb supportingstructure so that the desiccant material can rapidly absorb heat andgive up heat.
 11. The method of claim 3, wherein: in the pre-coolingstep, the transferring of heat from the dehumidified first air stream tothe stream of outside ambient air includes: transferring heat from thedehumidified first air stream to an intermediate stream of heat transferfluid; and transferring heat from the intermediate stream of heattransfer fluid to the stream of outside ambient air.